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All quiet on the borough’s biggest no-go zone
SOME might say the poor lad who dug in and refused to leave a Finsbury Park street corner was being harassed by the police.
But the unfortunate teenager was probably unaware that he was hanging around in the middle of Islington’s biggest-ever dispersal zone – and faced three months in jail if he didn’t head home for an early night.
The month-long order, first revealed in the Tribune last month, gives police the legal power to move on groups of youths hanging around Finsbury Park, Highbury West and Tollington wards.
But despite legions of police scrambled to the area for the past five days, only the aforementioned youth has been told to move on.
The police and Islington council say they want to “reclaim the streets from yobs who intimidate residents” near where 14-year-old Martin Dinnegan was stabbed to death in June.
But one of his friends fears such a strong diktat would give teenagers more of a reason to “rebel” against authority.
Under the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003, the police have the power to move on people whose behaviour “concerns” them. Anyone refusing to leave the area after being ordered to go faces a jail sentence of up to three months and maximum fine of £2,500. Under-16s can also be escorted home by officers.
The police and council officers will review the zone after one month to “make sure it is not pushing problems to other parts of the borough”.
It follows the killing of 14-year-old Martin, from Finsbury Park, who was stabbed to death.
Inspector John Archell, who heads Safer Neighbourhoods teams in north Islington, said: “This is not a curfew for young people. It is, instead, an effective means of controlling intimidating behaviour.”
But friends of Martin, who lived off Fonthill Road, fear the order will exacerbate an ‘us and them’ mentality between youths on the streets and officers.
In the wake of Martin’s death, it was initially feared the streets would be rife with violence all summer. But the situation appears to have calmed and many are questioning the need for a dispersal zone.
One 14-year-old, who attended Martin’s funeral last month, said: “I don’t think it’s going to work. If the police split up groups of youths then they are just going to rebel against it. I would not listen to them and I know a lot of my friends wouldn’t. The youths and police don’t like each other anyway and I think this could just make things more tense.”
The extra manpower needed to police three wards is available because dedicated schools’ officers are freed up.
Councillor Marisha Ray, Islington’s community safety chief, said: “There’s no need for anyone to hang around the streets or complain of boredom. We have arranged lots of activities all over Islington that young people of all age groups can take part in this summer.” |
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