Control of Delivering Justice and Welfare on Behalf of the Young - Essay Example

? Running head: SOCIOLOGY Topic:  “The main problem confronting young people is that adults are in control of delivering justice and welfare on behalf of the young.” Comment. I strongly hold the viewpoint that the main problem confronting young people is that adults are in control of delivering justice and welfare on behalf of the young. It is correct to say that although the importance of youth policy is broadly acknowledged across the world as a crucial element of public policy, it continues to remain blurred and questioned in regard to its breadth and depth. There is a need for the government to constantly review the national youth policy in developing and implementing learning processes in the areas of justice, employment, health, education, social solidarity, culture and family. It is widely accepted that very less attention has been given to issues of youth justice in spite of the fact that the pattern of criminal behaviors amongst youth is increasingly becoming a cause as well as impact of social exclusion. It is quite apparent that justice for young people is delivered by adults who do not perceive issues in the same way as the young do. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (Trewin, 2005) has reported that 79 percent of indigenous prisoners in Australia’s prisoners were aged 20 to 39, while a little over 68 percent from the non indigenous groups comprised of prisoners in the same age group. According to Cunneen and McDonald (1997), indigenous people are over represented in Australian prisons and this prison population is growing consistently in the country’s prisons, much faster than the non indigenous population. Lincoln and Wilson (2000) have held that indigenous juveniles are also over-represented in Australian prisons in comparison to adults. This reveals the extent to which young people are imprisoned, which further enhances the significance of resolving the apparent issues in order to create a balance in the law enforcement and criminal justice systems. There is need to place greater emphasis in the context of the involvement of young people in crime relative to preventive strategy, intervention, early detection and enforcement. At the same time there is a need to exercise caution so that policy makers do not just facilitate philosophies that always discuss issues relative to youth affairs. The basic problem associated with the community and leaders is that they do not actively involve young people in participation and the entire process takes the form of a rhetorical device that only aims at making people feel good. A major grievance of young people relates to participative structures being tokenistic or just rubber stamping chores for policy matters that have already been decided beforehand. It is important that youth policy be positive and opportunity focused but it cannot be denied that the need will always be there to effectively deal with young people that violate the law. Just as it is correct that use of illegal drugs, which is a criminal offence, should be dealt with on the basis of being a health and not criminal justice matter, it can be argued that youth crime too is basically a welfare issue and not of delinquency. This viewpoint is based on the assumption that the downtrodden are the ones that form the major percentage of the deprived in society. However, this perception was of greater significance four decades ago; concepts have changed now and young offenders have to be held responsible for their actions. At the same time it is required that judgments be delivered while considering the crime and the purpose of the crime from a more social perspective instead of pure legal jargon that wholly relies on strict compliance with the given procedures. In the context of the delivery of justice relative to young people, some issues are very important. Most of the young offenders are prone to commit petty crimes but they are also relentless in committing such offences. Although it is apparent that one time offenders should be given lenient treatment, regular offenders have to be sentenced appropriately in providing for deterrence in criminal behavior amongst youth. However, the major problem with young offenders arises amongst those that fall in the middle of these two extremes. There has to be a consensus in the legal fraternity by way of striking a balance in terms of reforms and reprisal. It is established through research that majority of young offenders get involved in crimes because of peer pressures or social and family backgrounds and all that they need to enter the social mainstream is to be counseled and guided appropriately. In this context, it is meaningful to consider what Ogilvie and Lynch (2001) have researched about offending patterns amongst young people in Australia, “what is particularly interesting about the preliminary findings is how consistent they are with other research on marginalized young people; irrespective of jurisdictional or situational context” (Ogilvie & Zyl, 2001, p.3). Another issue in this regard is the extent to which preventive policies can be implemented in vitiating disciplinary actions. In regard to taking responsibility and paying the price for criminal behaviors, young people should not be further deprived by being made to forego education opportunities or to fail in addressing mental related or drug dependency issues. If treatment programs are so framed in providing for accountability as well as punishment, solutions can be in sight. The state, society and communities have a moral duty to address the welfare needs of young people that are different to a great extent in comparison with other sections of the population in any given country. The youth labor market is under immense pressure in most parts of the world and the rising juvenilization of young people is increasing further complications because of which it is necessary to deal effectively with the major issues of youth policy. Youth participation can be increased by promoting more active citizenship for them. It is important to involve young people in the decision making process that influences them in their over all life. Solutions can be achieved only if political urgency is adopted in combating democratic shortcomings and developing procedures of improving the democratic systems. A sense of belonging has to be re-established amongst young people so that they do not feel ignored and detached. List of References Cunneen, C. & McDonald, D. (1997), Keeping Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People out of Custody: An Evaluation of the Implementation of the Recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, Office of Public Affairs, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, Canberra. Lincoln, R. & Wilson, P. (2000), “Aboriginal criminal justice: Background and foreground”, in D. Chappell & P. Wilson (eds.), Crime and the Criminal Justice System in Australia: 2000 and Beyond, Butterworths, Sydney. Ogilvie, Emma., & Zyl, A. V. (2001).Young Indigenous Males, Custody and the Rites of Passage, Criminology Research Council. Trewin, Denis, (2005). Prisoners in Australia. Australian Bureau of Statistics Read More