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Unity is
the only way forward in tackling our youths' problems
• Last week I wrote to extend my sympathies to all the
families caught up in recent tragic events on the streets of
Camden (A terrible waste of young lives, February 2).
I pledged then that the council would do what it could to provide
support and promote unity among the communities affected.
The issue of unity is particularly pertinent to the Somali community
at the moment – because of the devastating murder of 18-year-old
Mahir Osman, but also because of media coverage about fighting
among Somali youths.
While the police continue working to see justice delivered,
I want to update your readers on some of the initial steps the
council has taken to work with the Somali community and help
them, and the rest of the borough, move forward from this tragic
event.
Council officers and police attended a pre-arranged meeting
of the Somali Forum last Wednesday (February 1) and a meeting
of Somali youth last Friday (February 3) and we plan to meet
with representatives again in the very near future. Together
with our partners in schools, the health service and the police,
the council has been offering targeted help to the Somali community,
particularly its young people, for some time.
In addition to mainstream youth provision, more targeted activities
have included supporting the Somali Youth Development Centre;
detached youth workers on the streets; employing a Somali street
warden to engage young people in sporting activities, and Somali
youth workers as positive role models.
In addition Somali link workers are based at three secondary
schools (South Camden Community School, Hampstead and Haverstock
School) to work with young people and their families. They provide
support and advice to both young people and family and refer
them to other agencies if necessary.
We want to work in partnership with the Somali community to
address the needs of their young people – and this is what
last week’s meetings were about. Together with community
leaders and the young people themselves, we are identifying
the issues that affect them, and ways that we can offer practical
help in the short, medium and long term.
There have been calls in the media for more youth clubs, but
I truly believe that youth clubs alone are not the answer. All
children and young people need more than somewhere to go and
hang out with their friends for a couple of hours and those
at risk of offending need dedicated, specialised help and support.
Clearly, the authorities cannot deal with these issues without
the aid of the community. But together, we can succeed in tackling
the sort of problems, which led to the death of Mahir Osman.
We know that Somali leaders plan to meet with representatives
from other boroughs to address the issue of youth tensions,
and we fully support them in this action.
All of us must do everything we can to ensure that other young
men and women and their families do not suffer similarly.
Councillor Raj Chada
Leader of Camden Council
Town Hall
Judd Street
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