If it is up to Mayor Petra Dassen van Kerkrade, the disturbing figures about crime among Limburg youth authorities and politics should make The Hague aware of the problems in the border region.
“We had the feeling, but it has now been confirmed that it is very serious,” Dassen responds to the figures published Tuesday by TaskForce Youth Underminers, set up by the Regional Information and Expertise Center (RIEC). The mayor chairs the RIEC Limburg steering committee.
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Confirmation
It has ‘touched’ the mayor of Kerkrade. Thirty percent of the young people surveyed have experienced criminal behavior at some point, according to the survey of 690 adolescents. Dassen fears that if you have come into contact with it once, it is difficult to get out again.
the Hague
“Limburg is often too modest, but we have a pretty strong crime rate. We have to bring that under the spotlight at The Hague,” says Dassen. According to her, with the report she has facts in her hands that the justice minister cannot ignore.
According to the research, Limburg would be an ideal location for juvenile criminals due to its border location. The majority of juvenile delinquents are boys, but experts are also seeing more and more girls in the circuit. In addition, proportionately more young people who grow up in poorer, lower-educated families end up in crime.
Collaborate
In addition to more money from politics, schools, GGD, municipalities and youth workers should also work better together, according to the mayor. “If everyone continues to work from their own box, we will not be doing our job properly”, is Dassen’s realization.
According to Kim Wetjens of TaskForce Youthful Underminers, children come into contact with crime at a young age, especially online. “If they are approached, there must already be some kind of prevention. Also for parents, but certainly also for teachers,” says Wetjens. The latter can often notice at an early stage that something is wrong.