THE EDITOR, Sir:
In recent times, one notes with interest the various youth uprisings in Canterbury, Mountain View and Homestead. Youth uprising in the sense that most of the participants fall in the age cohort 17-24 as defined by the United Nations as Youth.
In view of the fact that the government has limited funds to right the problems, perhaps what should be done is a Community Safety Diagnosis (CSD), which is what is done globally in same or similar circumstances in which Jamaica finds itself now (21st Century thinking).`What is a Community Safety Diagnosis? The first step in co-producing security involves conducting a proper assessment of the problems and challenges in the given community in order to develop the most appropriate strategies for improving public security. A Community Safety Diagnosis is a knowledge tool that serves to better inform and guide actions taken.`How does the CSD work?
ANALYSIS OF DATA
The Community Safety Diagnosis is a tool used to better identify the risk factors at the local level, and to determine the measures most likely to be successful given the community's resources. However, a diagnosis must go beyond simple description of issues land resources to also include a needs assessment based on the analysis of various types of data:
1. Social indicators of risk such as unemployment and poverty rates, demographic and socio-cultural make-up of the community, housing conditions and availability, and cultural and recreational facilities available;
2. Data on delinquency, delinquents, and victims, particularly police and court statistics, the rates of cleared offences, incidents reported by community associations, schools, businesses, community-based groups, and public transit authorities. Such data is used to identify and analyse geospatial variations in security measures between different areas of the city. Geo-coding software can be used to produce maps representing geographical areas with concentrations and superimposition of various social and criminal problems. In turn, the use of such data collection and software does raise certain issues to be considered, both technical (collecting data that will be geo-codable) and ethical (protection of privacy), which a local committee would be best to resolve;
3. Data on the demands for security such as issues raised in neighbourhood meetings, victimisation polls that evaluate the population's feelings of security, other surveys of professionals working on-the-ground in the relevant area, and analysis of data collected by prevention agencies that are already active;
4. Data on the supply of security services (e.g. existing resources and on-going interventions) by the various organisations responsible for ensuring safety: police, justice, private security, social services and associations, etc. Many indicators can be used to evaluate the supply of security such as, among others, the allocation of police resources, indictments and convictions, consideration of victims, use of private security firms by businesses, insurance claim rates, security activities carried out by other organisations and institutions (schools, public housing), and the quality of public places.
NON-RESPONSIVE ZONES
Correlating these quantitative and qualitative data from multiple sources creates a more comprehensive picture of the demand for security than that provided by police data alone. Next, people's security needs can be better identified by comparing information on the demand for a Safety Diagnosis; purpose is to compare measured and expressed safety needs to existing resources and actions being undertaken. Making this comparison successful involves the collection of various types of data, particularly social, economic, and criminal data security with that on the supply of security services (actions and services offered by a plurality of actors). Such comparison allows the identification of non-response zones (where needs are not being met) as well as areas where services are not in line with the demand (needs inadequately met).``Conclusion
It is the analysis of the adequacy of balance between the supply and demand for security that is at the heart of the Community Safety Diagnosis. When carried out by all local partners collectively, a diagnostic can serve to strengthen a local coalition and contribute to the development of a common vision for all stakeholders. Furthermore, this analysis allows priorities to be identified and assists in preparing action plans that are tailored to local contexts. One challenge to consider is that such a collective effort brings together actors with differing conceptions and interest who, by virtue of their institutional nature, are not always inclined to accept sudden changes.
This is a project The Ministry of Local Government and the Social Development Commis-sion could have a serious look at if it is not already on the drawing board.
I am, etc.,
PETER W. JONES
Executive Director
International
Youth Foundation
liontraders@yahoo.com
