The St Kilda Community Safety meeting planned for Monday night (5 August) has been cancelled after the Police pulled out of the event.
The community meeting, promoted as a joint Council and VicPol event featuring St Kilda Police Inspector Brett Coloe and Mayor Heather Cunsolo, was announced on Monday but by Thursday the police had pulled out, forcing the Council to cancel the event.
In a statement on the Council website, Mayor Cunsolo said:
‘Our Council was advised today (1 August) by Victora Police that they would no longer provide a representative for the St Kilda Community Safety Forum on 5 August.
‘We have cancelled the event as it was an opportunity for police to hear from our community and to respond to their questions and concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour.
‘We are disappointed by their decision as we have successfully held similar forums attended by police over the past two years in locations across our City.
‘Any further questions should be directed to Victoria Police.’
Ouch.
Police say they host enough forums
In a lengthy statement provided to TWiSK, a police spokesperson said they will host a series of 30 Neighbourhood Policing Forums across 46 Local Government Areas this year.
‘Local police also participate in initiatives such as Coffee with a Cop and other community engagement activities to ensure community have multiple avenues to engage with police and to provide and seek information.
‘Given our ongoing commitment to hosting Neighbourhood Policing Forums across the state, Victoria Police does not intend to become involved in other forums of a similar nature.
‘Ultimately, the decision to cancel the forum was a decision made by council.’
Double ouch.
Informed sources say it was a top-down decision
Given the guarded tone of both explanations, TWiSK can only speculate why the police withdrew from the jointly organised event just days before it was scheduled.
An informed source told TWiSK that the change of heart by the police followed orders from the upper echelons of police command, possibly as high as assistant commissioner.
TWiSK suspects that it’s not a coincidence that police media were highlighting hundreds of drug crime related arrests in St Kilda the very same day as the police pulled out of the St Kilda event.
‘Port Phillip drug swoop nets hundreds of arrests’ was the catchy headline on the police media release on 1 August. In the police statement, Port Phillip Local Area Commander Inspector Brett Coloe said:
‘We understand the concerns of the Port Phillip community when it comes to drugs and flow-on crimes.
‘By arresting drug traffickers, seizing their drugs, and working with health agencies to support addicted persons, we are making Port Phillip safer for residents, retailers and visitors.
‘Local police have also taken advantage of intelligence provided by residents, allowing us to make significant arrests and keep drugs out of the community.
‘St Kilda is a really safe place to live and visit; and with around four million visitors to the suburb every year, your chances of being robbed are one in 160,000 and the chances of being randomly assaulted are almost one in 15,000.
‘Overall crime in St Kilda is the lowest it has been in the past ten years.’
Hold the phone! Did we read those crime stats correctly? How can it be good news that citizens are more likely to be randomly assaulted than robbed in St Kilda?
Local councillor disappointed, again
Ripped straight from the tabloids, the police media about successful, high impact drug seizures followed a double paid spread in the Herald Sun that reported on serious and sustained drug dealing going on with apparent impunity.
We asked local Cr Andrew Bond for a comment and this was his reply:
‘It’s very disappointing that the Police are now refusing to attend a community safety forum in St Kilda. The only time we seem to get a Police response these days is the now customary St Kilda negative crime article Police media blitz which we witnessed again this week.
‘Unfortunately history shows that once the TV cameras disappear, the Police patrols, and responses to calls for assistance drop off also, and the community is back to fending for themselves.’
For the record
Here is the VicPol response about the Community Safety Event in full:
‘Victoria Police is hosting a series of 30 Neighbourhood Policing Forums across 46 Local Government Areas this year.
‘As part of these forums, a panel of senior police update the community on local crime and road trauma trends and what police are doing to address these issues.
‘The forums also offer an opportunity for community members to pose questions to their local police, as well as raise awareness around community safety issues.
‘Any issues identified by the community may be entered in the Community Issues Register as part of Victoria Police’s Neighbourhood Policing framework.
‘A dedicated sergeant manages this register, allocating issues to local police officers who develop solutions in collaboration with local partners.’
‘In addition to Neighbourhood Policing Forums, police also facilitate an annual Community Sentiment Survey with the most recent survey receiving over 13,000 responses.
‘Local police also participate in initiatives such as Coffee with a Cop and other community engagement activities to ensure community have multiple avenues to engage with police and to provide and seek information.
‘Given our ongoing commitment to hosting Neighbourhood Policing Forums across the state, Victoria Police does not intend to become involved in other forums of a similar nature.
Ultimately, the decision to cancel the forum was a decision made by council.’
