I support the motion. The images that remain in my mind from the recent canvass completely reinforce the validity of the motion. Whether in rural or urban areas, what I faced daily and nightly were barricaded gates, triple locked doors, both front and back and not just one but three dogs in many cases, some chained and some in the rooms of urban dwellers where both partners were working. The surburban areas were barricaded during the day. Going back to the local elections six years ago, in rural areas there was an open door both day and night and one did not see community watch signs. They are a good thing but they are a symptom of the times. If you knocked on doors in the late afternoon or early evening you wondered whether the occupants were at home. They were afraid to come to the doors. The only thing that alerted their attention was the snarling of dogs which were not the typical dogs that I as a country person used to see. Instead of sheep dogs and collies I saw alsatians and other breeds I could not determine. It was an exercise in self-preservation. Being a farmer's daughter, I never had any fear of dogs but I got two bites for which I had to have anti-tetanus shots. I presumed that because I was not afraid of them I could move freely but, unfortunately, this was not so.
I am painting those pictures and images because the people in urban and rural Ireland are terrified day and night. It was very disturbing to see terror on the faces of elderly, middle aged and young people who choose to live in the country areas. They were absolutely terrified. I spoke to other councillors on the trail and they too said that people were living in fear, agony and terror and they were barricaded in their homes as if they were in Long Kesh or some other institution. The questions must to be asked, why? What is the problem? What has led to this tremendous anxiety among the people? In small villages there might be a squad car patrolling but, like the small rural post offices which are under threat, the police stations have already closed. It is very important that this motion was put down because we cannot ignore the problem.
The problems of rural Ireland have been enumerated 100 times in Seanad Éireann through debates on farming policies, An Post, the closure of schools and creameries. This is the last straw. The elderly should be living in contented environments, not under lock and key or under the surveillance of unusually vicious dogs.
The membership of the Garda Síochána three or four years ago was 11,500. We were promised a membership of 12,000 but the extra 1,000 members provided could not even keep pace with retirements. In rural areas particularly quite a number of retired gardaí were not replaced and one third of all small rural stations are without a sergeant. In the Limerick area not just little villages but villages with sizeable populations, such as Kilfinane, Murroe and Athea, are without a sergeant. The result of such a practice means that the number of attacks on elderly people have increased. These are not just petty crimes, we are talking about elderly people being beaten up. They do not have telephones so they cannot ring for help.
As regards the telecommunications system the so-called green man, from what I see of this it does not work. For some reason it is like people using the telephone and finding there is a recorder on. The number of times people speak is an indication of their slowness to accept such modern technology. I know the system was designed so that one would get through to the Garda and there would be an instant reaction from them. However, the response to the green man innovation has not been favourable. People will not talk to doors. The human dimension is important and cannot be ignored.
What research, if any, was done on this new telecommunications system? What has been the feedback? Has a report been published? If £30 million were spent on the telecommunications network, this would be part of it, I would like to see publication of the results of this modern technology. In the normal way there would be communication at least 20 times a day with the gardaí but only a dozen calls have been recorded through the green man system. I am not saying there should not be innovation but it should suit the needs of the community. Was the system tested? Was a random sample carried out to see if people would use this method to look for help? In times of stress one turns to the human being and not to some contraption. Have the new methods been of benefit to the people for whom they were installed?
Despite the fact that an offender is caught, property is rarely recovered so the victim of crime is not just upset but is also bereft of whatever property was taken. The treatment of victims and the court system must be looked at. In the Limerick city area, on a normal day 19 gardaí are on duty. During the summer months approximately five would go on leave and others go on courses. They are not replaced. With the cutback in overtime, a skeleton staff tries to cope with increasing problems. On a typical Sunday evening, of the 19 officers on duty there are ten on duty between 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. The gardaí are thin on the ground and it has been noticed that the number of crimes increase at that time. One specific example of that is the cars of people visiting graveyards are broken into. The criminals are very much aware that this is an off-peak time and they have a bonanza.
The fundamental test in deciding whether to allow bail is the likelihood of the applicant to evade justice. His solicitor will give a guarantee that he will appear when his court hearing comes up but while those people are on bail — and this has been shown statistically — waiting for their court cases to come up they commit more crime because they know they will get concurrent sentences. We want bail to be refused because the evidence shows that offenders continue to offend and that is something that has to be addressed.
Let us look at unemployment and its relationship to crime. We see youngsters with ambition and with a great sense of purpose living in large housing estates. As a result of unemployment ambitions are unfulfilled and there is a feeling of uselessness. There is a lack of family support because of unemployment, poor housing and lack of opportunity. As a result of that, there is lack of self-esteem. As the old saying goes, the devil makes plenty of work for idle hands and youngsters get up to all sorts of mischief. They start innocently, move on to glue sniffing, petty crime and joy riding and then they get involved in wanton vandalism. They become involved in robbery and feel that they do not belong in society. The education system fails to support those who are not academically inclined and who leave school at a very young age.
We do not want to be negative. We want to look at methods of preventing crime. This needs an investment of money in the very early stages. It means building a sense of community, addressing youngsters' educational needs at basic primary level and tackling unemployment in blackspot areas. Nobody sets out as a young child to behave badly but if they do not have the support structures to enable them to live fruitful lives they will end up committing crime. The strength of the Garda must be increased. We must get rid of the green man if it is not making any impact. We must review policy on policing in rural areas and restore a realistic Garda presence. We must also deal immediately with the bail situation.
