Street violence - State must tackle drink abuse crisis

THE explosion of unprovoked violence on the streets of Ireland’s cities and towns has spawned a plethora of sociological theories about this ugly side of Irish life. But at the end of the day, it comes down to one thing: drink.

Drunkenness, abuse of alcohol call it what you will is the predominant factor behind an epidemic of casual violence that makes war zones of the country's accident and emergency units night after night.

So vicious are these attacks that some people have been battered to death, while others have ended up on life-support systems.

That excessive drinking and violent crime are inextricably interwoven is borne out by the most up-to-date official report. It shows that since Operation Encounter began targeting pubs, nightclubs, fast-food outlets and other venues where there is a significant potential for disorder, the gardaí have detected more than 78,000 crimes.

The statistics make for bleak reading. Over a 12-month period there were 9,269 assaults, including 3,065 attacks causing harm or serious harm; 22,404 incidents of threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour; 33,792 incidents of public drunkenness; 10,027 cases of failing to comply with garda directions; 1,993 cases of disorderly conduct and 521 cases of the sale or supply of alcohol to minors.

This grim chronicle of serious assault, drunkenness and public disorder portrays a graphic picture of the correlation between excessive drinking and violence. Every day, 25 people are assaulted in drink-related street violence. On an average day, the gardaí have to deal with 210 public order offences.

Part of the problem, as identified by Justice Minister Michael McDowell, relates to under-age drinking in large pubs, which become trouble flashpoints at closing time. The minister should not hesitate to alter the licensing system in order to control these superpubs, which not only create noise and nuisance for local residents but also make controls on under-age drinking more difficult to enforce.

Every night, evidence of the breakdown of law and order is demonstrated to an alarming degree on our streets, especially at weekends. Excessive consumption of alcohol by young people has now reached crisis level in Irish society. Those who illegally supply them with drink should be put out of business.

So prevalent is the culture of binge drinking at weekends that young women examined by a doctor were so drunk they could not remember being raped. A Dáil committee heard that only in the Coroners Court had the doctor in question experienced evidence of such excessive drinking.

In a bid to root out under-age drinking, Mr McDowell has proposed issuing ID cards for people under the age of 23, or possibly 25. Despite significant resistance from the drinks trade, the minister can be assured of widespread public support if he chooses to go down that road.

It will be interesting to see how this vexed issue will be addressed by the Liquor Licensing Commission when it publishes its reports on under-age drinking and on the sale of alcohol by pubs, clubs, supermarkets and other outlets.

Unless the Government is prepared to take a no-nonsense approach to the crisis of alcohol abuse, the related problems of gratuitous violence, drink driving and serious social disorder will continue to escalate.