Experts, Psychologists Warn: Algiers unsafe, Citizens at the Mercy of Criminals

Experts and specialists warned of the dangerous rise of crime and rebellion against family values ​​and community in Algeria, as a result of the fundamental transformations in the society during the last 25 years which has seen a multi-dimensional crisis.

Dr. Amina Kadri, a professor of sociology at the University of Algiers told Echorouk; “The breakneck expansion of violence and criminality of all types, is the direct result of the decline of security feeling among the citizens in general, due to the social accumulations left by the crisis that the country experienced, and the inability of the authorities to accompany those transformations through conducting in-depth studies that allow the nowledge of what is happening in the society.

“The lack of studies on Algerian society lead to the exagerating use of deterrence, which has proved its limitations in reducing violence and insecurity in the community. The social transformation left hard social and economic conditions, which contributed to the deviation of broad categories of youth and the rise of vulnerable groups, as a result of fundamental changes in the society”, she added.

For his part, Professor Moustafa Khayati, Head of the National Commission for the Promotion of Health and Development Research (Foram), told Echorouk; “At least 13.000 adolescents are referred annually to justice, and 100.000 adolescents less than 16 years leave school each year. Justice will hand over 90% of teenagers to their families. The delinquency contributed to the emergence of social insecurity and cases of robbery and assault. Organized crime cells resort to the use of teenagers in carrying attacks and promoting drugs and theft, because they know that the laws are not strict enough with the events. There is no real study of the problems experienced by adolescents in the family and beyond.Families refuse to receive kids who were born out of wedlock and this contributed to a large increase in the phenomenon of delinquency”.

Dr. Arar Abderrahman, Chairman of the Algerian Association for the Protection of the Kids Rights told Echorouk; “Youth suffer from disintegration, violence and rejection of the community values, reluctance and introverts, due to the large backlog of pain experienced by Algeria as a result of armed violence, and increasing rates of unemployment and poverty, and the expansion of the fragile class”.

“The multifaceted crisis in Algeria led to a huge social transformation, as violence has become the basic feature of expression among all categories, making the feeling of security almost nonexistent. Without a comprehensive review of the leaders of opinion and politicians, and the heads of state institutions, violence will become a form of life in the Algerian society”.

“Internet, social networks, violent movies and online games, has become a basic reference for the teenager in Algerian society, due to the confined traditional references, and spaces associated with the family, the family, school and neighborhood, of the spaces associated with which they contribute collectively to ensure the child and adolescent and safe access by the stage youth and adulthood, which requires fast and comprehensive review of the social system prevailing in the social space that combines adults and adolescents.