In raising this matter I call on the Minister for Justice to deal with the growing problem of knife attacks and declare a temporary amnesty to facilitate the surrender of knives to the Garda. Last Monday, I attended the launch of the "Bin your Blade" campaign. Deputy Eoin Ryan made a large input into the organisation of that campaign and it was appreciated by a great many people. There was a display of vicious and lethal knives, cleavers, machetes, daggers and blades at the launch.
Attending the launch were two families who have lost sons through knife attacks. Both families lived in my Dublin South-Central constituency but have had to move, in one case to Enniscorthy. The permission of the parents has been obtained to mention their names for the record. They were Keith Wall and Glen Ward and they were victims of unprovoked and unreasoned attacks. It is possible that only for the availability of such awful weapons both young men could be alive today.
Surprisingly, no data or statistics are kept on knife attacks. However, I have no doubt that the incidence of such attacks is especially high in my area of the city. In many cases young people carry knives as appendages to highlight a macho or tough guy image. We must send a clear signal that the carrying of these weapons is neither macho nor hard; it is stupid and criminal.
I call on the Minister to heed the call of the "Bin your Blade" campaign and its supporters. Gardaí, taxi men, bus drivers, bar staff, shop workers and security staff highlight the dangers they face from knife attacks. The New York police have called knives the most insidious of all weapons and have said that knives are much more dangerous than guns.
The crime correspondent of The Sunday World, Paul Williams, has written at length on the subject in the past and has done a great deal to highlight the problem. I congratulate the various people behind the campaign, especially Deputy Eoin Ryan. I also wish to salute the pop groups Boyzone and OTT for endorsing the call and being publicly associated with it.
I ask the Minister to implement the following four point programme which the campaign has formulated: first, amend the definition of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act, 1990, to "any object carried for an unlawful purpose and capable of inflicting injury". Second, declare a two month amnesty for the surrender of such weapons and provide bins at Garda stations into which these knives can be surrendered. Third, introduce a prohibition on the sale of such weapons to those under 16 years. It is ridiculous that a 12 year old can purchase a knife and be arrested by a garda for being in possession of an illegal weapon, yet it not illegal to sell knives to youngsters under 18 years of age. This must be examined immediately. Fourth, a register of those importing or selling sporting weapons should be established. This should include an obligation to record details of sales and purchases.
I have long advocated a zero tolerance attitude to crime. As a society we must be seen to come down on all forms of criminal behaviour. There is already a huge problem with drugs in our city. The growing vigilantism which we are witnessing is born out of frustration at seeing so many crimes go unpunished. We must take every opportunity we can to demonstrate our intolerance of criminal activity and use every sanction at our command. This is one such opportunity. In the UK there have been many examples of these campaigns and they have succeeded in taking these dreadful weapons out of circulation. I call on the Minister to move in this area where reform and enforcement are so badly needed.
