Youth conflicts in Vienna: Police are fighting violence at hotspots

Youth conflicts in Vienna: Police are fighting violence at hotspots

in Vienna, youth crime is a hotly discussed topic, especially after there was a mass brawl that was the result of a longer ethnic conflict between different groups. The conflict broke out between Syrians and Afghans on one side, and Chechens and Turks on the other. The disputes that often also involved knives and firearms and took place in parks such as the favorite and Brigittenauer Park were particularly brutal.

A 16-year-old witness describes how the situation is still tense. "Last week they almost disabled my friend," he reports. This violence arose in connection with an alleged dispute over an insult. The police have brought such incidents on the scene that have taken measures since March to increase security.

regular police controls

In order to get the youth crime under control, the police have launched regular focus campaigns, supported by a special group of operations. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner and Vienna's police chief Gerhard Pürstl recently inspected the situation along the Wiener U6, which is considered one of the problem areas. Despite the cold, the expectations of the controls were reserved and there were only a few suspicions.

Karner mentioned that the group was already in use more than 70,000 hours this year, which led to 87 arrest and the confiscation of 34 weapons. The measures seem to show initial successes, since a decline in violent crimes by young people has been determined in recent months. Nevertheless, the question remains how sustainable this decline is, while several young people report that the winter months have contributed to silence.

According to an assessment by Daniel Lichtenegger from the Federal Criminal Police Office, the disputes are usually superficial nature and are based on little things. "There is no classic gang crime here like in other big cities," he clarifies what the dynamics of the conflicts in Vienna significantly differentiates. Instead, these are temporary mergers of young people who can resolve quickly.

draft law for arms regulation

Especially the use of knives in conflicts is a topic that Karner busy. He has proposed an Austrian Message Problem Act, but the implementation of which is met with resistance from the Greens. Nevertheless, the minister sees the need for stricter rules in the handling of potentially dangerous objects.

The discussion about this legislative initiative shows how serious the situation is within the youth. Momo acquitted that he and his friends are checked by the police almost every day. He adds: "We don't want stress, but where should we go?" This uncertainty could become the desired answer to the prevention measures of the police.

The situation in Vienna shows that youth crime is a complex problem that has many facets. With the hope of stabilizing the situation, it remains to be seen whether the seizure can take action to defuse the conflicts in the long term. More details can be found in a detailed report kurier.at .