Richard Eckersley and Lynne Reeder
The Prime Minister’s recent remark likening some
entertainment precincts to war zones
because of alcohol-fuelled violence echoes comments made down the years
about the problem. Violence in public places is an international phenomenon,
associated in part with the huge growth in what is called the night-time
economy. In Britain,
this growth has been called the biggest single threat to public order and
health and safety.
The idea might have been to create a civilised,
European-style nightlife. The reality is something different: as a British
commentator noted, ‘Yeah, well, actually it is a real European environment out
there, but a bit less like Paris and more like the Somme’.
In 2008 Victoria Police commissioned Australia21 to
conduct an expert roundtable and to write a report on violence and public
safety as part of the development of a whole-of-government strategy. The participants came from a range
of relevant scientific disciplines and State Government departments and
agencies with responsibility for policy development and implementation.
There was agreement across all jurisdictions – police,
ambulance, hospitals, courts and education – that there had been a pronounced
increase in previous years not only in the incidence of violence, but also in
its severity. As one participant said, in the past a pub brawl was just a brawl.
The worst thing that might have happened was that someone would be swinging a
billiard cue around. ‘Now it’s gone beyond that. It’s the king hit, it’s the
glassing, the stabbings, the things that you didn’t really see in the past.’
Much, but not all, of this public violence is alcohol- and
drug-related, and involves young people as both offenders and victims. The
upsurge in public violence is not readily explained. It is possible Australian
society has reached a tipping point, where the conjunction of many social
changes and developments – short-term and long-term, specific and broad - has
produced social conditions conducive to violence.
Explanations include the growth of the night-time economy
and a 24/7 lifestyle, involving specific issues such as: industry deregulation
and promotion of economic considerations over social goals; the failure of
accords between licensees and authorities; and inadequate public transport in
entertainment precincts. There had also been a lack of sustained action to
address the problem, and a dearth of good research evidence on what works in
some key areas.
Broader explanations include changes in poverty and
disadvantage, the family and parenting, and communications technology and the
media; an individualistic, consumer culture; and young people’s biological and
social development, including links between antisocial behaviour and other
aspects of young people’s health and wellbeing. Specific factors here include:
parental over-protection or neglect; increased social expectations and
pressures, on the one hand, and social exclusion and alienation, on the other; a
perception of violence as the norm, even fun; a lack of respect and empathy;
and a sense of invulnerability and ignorance of human fragility.
When it came to proposing solutions,
some participants focused on more immediate, direct interventions to address
public violence, others emphasised a broader, social-development perspective.
Nevertheless, most, if not all, participants agreed on the need for a
multi-dimensional strategy spanning timeframes, social scales and government
jurisdictions.
Key responses reflected this wide
range of actions, including:
·
Increased policing of randomly selected premises
at random times, and more targeted policing of problem premises.
·
Training bar staff in managing all antisocial
behaviours, not just drunkenness.
·
Achieving a better mix of regulatory strategies that
balance economic and social goals and objectives, combine informal and formal
regulation, and can be adapted to suit different localities.
·
Introducing
specific programs in schools to enhance the social and emotional wellbeing of students.
·
Broadening
the focus of the education system beyond academic achievement and vocational qualifications
to make the curriculum more relevant to young people’s lives and passions.
·
Increasing
parent education.
·
Addressing
violence in the media.
Actions have
been taken since 2008; some have worked to reduce alcohol- and drug-related
violence. But as recent events show, the problem remains. Everyone - including parents,
young people, education providers, police and government at all levels - has a
role to play in addressing public violence. There are no quick fixes; we need to
tackle the deeper social issues as well as the problem itself.
Richard Eckersley and
Lynne Reeder are directors of Australia21 and the authors of its report,
‘Violence in public places: Explanations and solutions’, commissioned by
Victoria Police in 2008. The report is available at:
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