JUSTICE Minister Loucas Louca yesterday announced a six-year National Action Plan to combat increasing crime, which contains 221 specific steps, he said.
Louca was speaking at a Crime Committee meeting, on the day of an attempted murder at a Strovolos petrol station and only two days after a murder in Nicosia, and grenade was thrown at the home of former police spokesman, Michalis Katsounotos in Limassol.
Referring to the fact that there were two murders in the past three months, Louca said:
“This is an all-encompassing programme.. it is a long-term six year programme that we will reap the benefits of over the next twenty years.”
According to Louca, the aim is to help mould young people’s characters so that when they reach adulthood they will have more of a solid base if faced with problems, be it drugs, juvenile delinquency, crime or violence.
“Our aim is to help young people face today’s problems that plague society in a more effective way,” said Louca, adding that the plan would now be submitted to the Cabinet.
The plan is divided into three parts including ways to decrease crime, repeat offending and prevention.
Responding to a reporter who commented on the rise in crime recently, Louca said that the National Action Plan and the police were two separate issues, clarifying that the plan is focused on dealing with crime in the long-term.
“Volunteer as well as non-volunteer organisations will be involved along with the Labour Ministry in order to give children the correct sense on how their personalities should develop and how they may perceive something that is considered bad,” said Louca.
Quizzed on the attack at Katsounotos’ home on Saturday, Louca said that the case was still being investigated, and he was being fully informed on the matter.
A hand grenade was thrown at Katsounotos’ home during the early hours of Saturday. The former spokesman who now heads Limassol’s traffic department said he had a good idea who was behind the attack, and a number of people have been brought in to give statements.
Meanwhile, the Cyprus Police Association and the Senior Police Officers Association said yesterday that they ‘condemned the cowardly grenade attack’ and offered their full support to the Katsounotos family.
