Poll finds a majority of people who are concerned for their safety in Dublin city centre at night.
Eight out of ten Dubliners believe that the city is not safe at night according to a poll carried out by the MRBI for The Irish Mirror newspaper.
Seventy eight per cent of respondents said they were afraid to walk the capital's streets after dark. The poll also showed that young people felt more at risk from street violence than any other group. They also considered parts of the city to be a no-go area.
According to the poll, the vast majority of Dubliners are now too frightened to walk the streets of our capital at night.
The poll also found ninety four per cent of teenagers believe that Dublin is not safe at night. Almost half of teenagers knew someone who had been attacked or mugged in the city centre in the past year.
Responding to the poll findings, one young person said,
You just basically have to keep your head down and ignore everything.
Another commented that things have improved slightly as the Nightlink bus service is more regular and there are less people out on the streets at the same time.
While young people are the most likely targets of street crime, they are often the most reluctant to report a crime to Gardaí. Anne Meade, of Victim Support, says many young people do not report assaults for fear of retaliation.
Opposition politicians reacted to the poll with the Labour Party saying that Dublin resembles east LA than the EU capital. Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the survey shows that the government has failed to protect people from thugs. Speaking in Dáil Éireann, he said
You have failed completely to protect the citizens, the young men and the young women of this city, from thugs, villains, unprovoked attacks and violence promoted by drink and substance abuse.
The government has said that it is committed to increasing the number of Gardaí on patrol on the streets.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 5 May 2004. The reporter is John O'Driscoll.
