By Charlene Macaulay
An African-Australian community taskforce has been established to work with police to address youth crime and anti-social behaviour.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton announced last week the volunteer-run taskforce, which includes Richard Deng and Kot Monoah from the South Sudanese Community Association of Victoria, would directly support the police and community by:
•Providing information to police on emerging issues and hot spots;
•Establishing a more efficient channel for police to engage with African-Australian leaders and provide advice on how they can best deploy their people and help to prevent youth crimes and anti-social behaviour occurring; and
•Providing police with information on incidents of racial vilification and other hate crimes aimed at African Australians.
Mr Ashton said he had sat down with senior members of the African Australian community to try and understand what had changed in recent weeks to cause the escalation of public disorder offences by groups of African youths, particularly across the Wyndham area.
“The vast majority of law abiding members of the African Australian community are hurting as well. They very much want to be part of providing solutions to that, and I think this taskforce is a good approach.”
On Sunday, South Sudanese community leaders joined police on patrol at Tarneit Central Shopping Centre.
“The joint patrol is just one of the ways that police are working with the community hand-in-hand to address the criminal behaviour that we’ve seen recently,” Wyndham police Acting Inspector Peter Bitton said.
Deputy Commissioner Andrew Crisp said he had been disturbed to learn that a number of African Australians had been subjected to death threats and other racial vilification.
Mr Monoah, a lawyer who has already co-ordinated patrols with South Sudanese community leaders said many African youths had been told to “go back where they came from” and were treated with suspicion when in shops as a result of the rising crime and public order offences.
