Time to scrap bottle shop cops
DISAPPOINTINGLY, the Northern Territory continues to be plagued with the issues and harm caused as a result of excess alcohol consumption.
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This was further confirmed by your front page story in last week’s edition.
In what has been termed a “war on drunks”, temporary beat locations – now known as point-of-sale interventions – were introduced in regional centres Alice Springs, Katherine and Tennant Creek.
Similar attempts to introduce POSIs in the greater Darwin area were simply not achievable due to the large number of liquor outlets.
Your story reinforced the Northern Territory Police Association’s long-term stance: that POSIs are a Band-Aid measure.
Opting to stand a police officer outside a takeaway liquor outlet simply relocates a problem drinker elsewhere.
In the end, this does not help anyone.
This has become evident in Darwin, whereby former residents of Katherine and surrounds have relocated because POSIs are not taking place.
Surely there is no better evidence than this to see that POSIs are not the solution.
POSIs are resource intensive, unsafe and not sustainable in the long term.
While short-term gains are being made in some areas as a result of POSIs, it is not addressing the core problem regarding alcohol abuse.
As members of the Katherine community, your readers should also ask themselves – is standing outside a bottle shop what they would like their police doing?
Who is going to answer their emergency calls when they need help if the police officer is standing idle at the takeaway alcohol outlet?
We continue to the call on both sides of government to develop and implement a strategic plan for the long-term benefit of the entire community.
It is time for a rethink on the approach, as our police officers should not be the only answer.
Paul McCue, Northern Territory Police Association president
I WISH to applaud Geoffrey Wangupa Jungarray Barnes for calling out the ineffective alcohol management policies both the Country Liberal Party and Territory Labor have tried to implement over the past two government terms.
As someone who has battled alcoholism my entire adult life, I can tell you that not allowing a person with a problem to buy grog does not work, and does absolutely nothing to target the disease itself.
Alcoholism is a real disease – impacting people of every skin colour – and it is costing the Territory enormous amounts of money.
Name and address withheld
Criticism for 'pointless’ editing
WHILE the Katherine Times on occasions publishes longer letters to the editor, it generally likes letters to be limited to a maximum of approximately 250 words.
A recent letter of mine regarding Commonwealth government intentions to abolish pathology bulk-billing was 270 words.
Katherine Times editor Lyndon Keane edited 180 words out, hence the letter as published completely missed the point that I was endeavouring to make.
“Don't kill bulk-bill” legislation due to be introduced on July 1 is a federal issue, but it will adversely effect many Territorians by overloading an already-stretched healthcare system.
The point I was trying to make is that with Territory and federal elections looming, it would be prudent for Northern Territory politicians to deliver a message to Canberra that Territorians are not happy about the proposed cutbacks.
While it is the editor's prerogative to trim long letters back at times, it should not be done when it renders a letter pointless.