The Advertiser: Hindley St arrests - but police can't stay : "Superintendent Paul Schramm said 30 officers had been used in the operation and that they would return, but he conceded the concentration of officers could not be maintained.
'It is impossible to have this number of resources used as a permanent operation,' he said."
It's true, the police cannot police one street. Hindley Street is one of our main streets and it has been an ongoing problem. It has always had a life and character but it has become very unpleasant. The police have discovered it's mainly Friday and Saturday nights and they have had different operations on Hindley Street recently. For one thing, they are listening. Secondly they are acting. Thirdly they will have realised it is a problem and will continue to police it in a way which takes their resources into account. If a more consistent police presence is required for a while then staffing issues and recruitment will need to be considered by our government. It will take a while to change Hindley Street back to a normal, bubbly nightlife area. I guess it's about what we value and what we are prepared to accept. Whatever is setting off Hindley Street will simply spread if the behaviour takes hold. That would be very costly in the long term. It can never be about expedience when safety is an issue. We have all been talking about how we are fed up living in or visiting places where you are confined indoors and have no right to walk the area. It means the bulk of us have a curfew and the smaller group dictates the terms of our way of living.
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