How to stop crime wave

From Media Indonesia

Crime is on the increase in Jakarta. The rate of crimes has become so intense that the public is greatly distressed.

And, perhaps even more frightening, the criminals are young. Clearly it is necessary to tighten security control.

It is not enough for the authorities to curb the crimes but more importantly to find out the cause of the acts. We must realize that crimes constitute the fruit of the way of life and value systems of the present society. We are witnessing a life- style which is not in harmony with religious and ethical values that prevail in the East. A life-style which is more oriented to material values and Western culture, and values derived from films. All of this tends to have a negative influence on the behavior of the younger people. Lack of affection from parents also contributes to the prevailing incidence of violence and crime.

I would like to suggest a few measures that could be taken to be taken to check future crimes:

1. Intensify religious education outside the school curriculum. This can be organized by the school itself or by social organizations like Mosque-related youth groups or the Young People's Forum.

2. Enhance the sense of togetherness between people of the low- income brackets and strong-economic community members to ensure equal distribution of wealth.

3. Exercise stricter control over foreign films. We can take the good things, but reject the negative aspects.

AHMAD ZAHIR ZAINI

Jakarta