Sir, - We note with interest Fianna Fail's pre-election statement on crime. While we welcome some of its proposals, we are deeply concerned that there has been no commitment given to maintaining and increasing community policing in the most disaffected areas in Dublin. In fairness, we have to say that neither has there been any long-term commitment from the present Government to maintain the "Dochas" operation.
We have had a lot of adverse publicity in your newspaper recently in relation to the anti-drug activists in Ballybough, with the Gardai hinting that the IRA was conducting this campaign. If the Gardai really believe this, surely they should have been trying to fill the vacuum left by years of political neglect and lack of community policing, by trying to win the trust of the people instead of constantly trying to put us down in the national press.
On a positive level, what the anti-drug movement has done is to bring this community off its, knees and work together to encourage the drug-dealers to leave our area.
Another result of the community's getting together was to form the Ballybough Redevelopment Action Group (BRAG) to help get resources for, and build up pride in the community. We have also helped and supported addicts to get treatment, and we are currently in negotiation with the EHB to set up a treatment centre in the area for our own addicts., Most important of all, we are helping to change the attitude of many of the children towards drug abuse. Through the anti-drug activities, they are now seeing drugs as damaging and drug-dealers as unacceptable to the community.
To address the difficulties we have with the Gardai, we are holding a meeting with the Garda management in the area within the next week, because we don't want to be patrolling forever and we recognise that it is the Gardai's responsibility. The recent statements from Mr King, the assistant commissioner, that "Dochas" has been successful or will finish shortly, has left us aghast.
We have only started to enter into a dialogue with the Gardai and years of mistrust cannot be overcome in a few months. We need to see a long-term commitment by the politicians to community policing; otherwise, the `Dochas' operation will be seen for what most of us suspected that it might be a knee-jerk reaction to a difficult social situation, with no real commitment to some of the most drug-ridden and disadvantaged areas in Dublin. - Yours, etc.,
(Ballybough Against Drugs),
(Ballybough Redevelopment
Action Group),
Ballybough,
Dublin 3.