RISE OF GANG RULE IN MALDIVES – PART 1

In the past, street gangs have been considered loosely organized boys whilst engaged in minor troubles, and rarely in petty thefts and drugs on a local level. But today's street gangs in Maldives are very different, operating at various levels. Today, sophisticated gang operations have members crossing atolls establishing syndicates and recruiting young members in communities across the country. Gangs use children because they know that whatever the child does, he or she may not be put on trial in a court of law or imprisonment. Similar to other countries, some Maldivian gangs have advanced to criminal organizations stage engage in high-stakes narcotics trafficking, robbery, homicide and other equally serious crimes. Never before in Maldives have gangs been so dangerous, and the problem is widely spreading across the country at deplorable rate.

STATISTICAL FACTS
·At least 783 youths are currently in gangs nationwide.
·Drug related attests increased up to 40% from 1660 in 2007 to 2663 in 2008. Studies indicate every 1 in 3 youth is using drugs.
·Prevalence of Children involved in criminal activities are increasing at an alarming rate.

INTERVENTION / PREVENTION
There is no magic or an easy answer to solve the problem of gang related violence. The combined efforts of parents, schools, NGOs, community leaders and law enforcement is required to reduce and prevent the gang violence occurring in our society. It was a mistake that we are paying too much attention on and resources on the existing criminals, while there is no strategy to address the youngsters who are on the brink of becoming the victims of the spreading menace.

LEARNING FORM MISTAKES: WARNING SIGNS OF GANG ACTIVITY
Most gang members are proud of their gang and freely admit their membership. Their personal belongings and street of living are frequently covered with graffiti and bear the gang symbols or logos. In early 1990s we made a mistake of ignoring these marks thinking that they are symbols of changing youth culture due to influence of western society. But, one of the first indications that gangs are being formed in your community is the appearance of graffiti. Recently, similar to Male’, we are seeing graffiti in islands of atolls with various symbols and names. Unfortunately, to most people, graffiti represents thoughtless vandalism and childish pranks. But, to gang members, graffiti is a marking of territorial boundaries and serves as a warning or challenge to a rival gang. Graffiti is like the underground newspaper of gangs. If you seriously think about it, graffiti can point out how gangs are flourishing and which gangs are fighting with each other, and how they honour leaders within each gang. Therefore this is the time for the island communities to be serious about the gangs so that we can avoid what has been happening in the capital city of Male’.

“READ, REPORT, RECORD AND REMOVE ALL GRAFFITI!”
To be continued ….