Download the file - United Nations Rule of Law

Urban crime and violence: Policy responses95Box 4.5 Key conclusions from the 2003 Port Moresby survey of people aged 15 to 35, undertakenfor its Safer Cities ProgrammeThe key action points were summarized according to the followingfour headings:Law enforcement:• Improve professionalism, transparency, effectiveness, efficiencyand accountability in government, police and criminal justicesystems.• Focus more attention on crime prevention and restorativejustice, and on the re-socialization and rehabilitation ofoffenders.• Link traditional village courts and mediation structures to thecriminal justice system.• Strengthen coordination among law enforcement agencies.Community development:• Improve community access to basic urban services.• Involve youth and marginalized groups in decision-making.• Strengthen the family–community–church partnership toengage youths at risk.Urban management and planning:• Principles of safety, convenience and sustainability should beintegral features of a functioning urban environment.• Improve urban governance through broad-based partnerships.• Include squatter settlements in planning and management,including a review of land tenure opportunities.• Strengthen the participation and coordination capabilities ofthe staff involved in planning and management.Culture and family:• Promote social cohesion through programmes aimed atmaintaining social harmony.• Educate communities on the benefits of crime prevention.• Encourage mediation and conflict resolution at the familylevel.A key need was seen to be the strengthening of institutional capacity.Further recommendations in this regard included:• Strengthen the ability of existing institutions to manage urbansafety and security issues.• Promote public, private and community interfaces to addresssafety and security issues.• Improve the capacity of community groups to prepare andimplement crime prevention action plans.• Improve coordination of the roles and responsibilities of theinstitutions involved in urban safety and security.Source: Boamah and Stanley, 2007and a dump for corpses and the carcasses ofstolen cars after their saleable parts wereremoved. Now this space is occupied by SESI, asports and swimming complex used by localfamilies, with new high-rise apartments for themiddle class in the background. 46The case of Diadema illustrates what can be achieved by politicalwill, sustained commitment to action, effectivepartnership, and strong and visible leadership, starting offfrom a very poor position where crime and violence wereclearly impeding the progress of the settlement and itspeople. Nevertheless, Diadema still has a long way to gobefore its homicide rates are down to what would beregarded as ‘normal’ rates in many other parts of the world.For example, its 2003 homicide rate of 74 per 100,000people, while being little more than half the rate that it hadexperienced four years previously, was still 50 per cent largerthan that for Greater São Paulo and more than ten times therates experienced in many other world cities. 47 Clearly, theneed here is to continue with the sustained commitment toaction that has been exhibited in recent years, and to recognizethat this will need to be seen as a long-term initiative.Port Moresby, Papua New GuineaPort Moresby in Papua New Guinea has several themes incommon with Diadema. Probably the most significant is thevery high crime rates that the city has experienced, particularlythe high levels of violence associated with criminalactivities – 48 per cent of crimes in Port Moresby involve ahigh level of violence. The city has a population of over330,000, which makes it the biggest urban centre in PapuaNew Guinea. Its population is characterized by a rapidgrowth rate of 3.6 per cent per annum, a high proportion ofmigrants, high cultural and ethnic diversity, and a very youngstructure. 48 The rapid rate of urban growth, coupled withinadequate land legislation, has resulted in the creation ofsome 40 squatter settlements around the city, which houseabout 50 per cent of its population. These areas are regardedas havens of criminal activity. Another characteristic thatappears to be a significant factor in the city’s experience ofcrime and violence is its very high reliance on the informaleconomy for employment, given limited opportunities in theformal sector. This means that young men often have littleexperience of employment and resort to other means ofmaking a living, often in association with gang membership.Box 4.5 summarizes the key points from a survey of 1500young people aged between 15 and 35, undertaken in 2003as part of the process of establishing Port Moresby’s SaferCities Programme.The points summarized in Box 4.5 undoubtedly representa huge agenda, and the Port Moresby Safer CitiesProgramme is only in the early stages of tackling it. Atpresent, it can only be seen as a useful case study of what isinvolved in establishing a sound basis of understanding inorder for a start to be made in such a difficult situation. Butthis is of value in itself because sometimes the process ofmaking a start can appear bewildering given the nature andintensity of the problem. Inevitably, the first phase of thisprogramme has concentrated on the things needed to get itstarted and running effectively.