Zagreb’s Mayor: We Are Not City Of Violence

Whilst Zagreb was planning better security, Sisak recorded another case of violence amongst minors.

Whilst a plenum was being held in Zagreb for improving security, Sisak recorded another case of violence amongst minors.

The growing violence amongst the young, and an increased number of beatings is the reason a plenum on security is being held, popularly called Zebra. Zagreb’s mayor Milan Bandic said in he address that this is why he called the conference “Cities Against Violence”.

“The increase in violence amongst the young is 60%, and we are not that city, we are not such people, you are not such people and we need more” said Bandic. He added that the citizens have sent 300 proposals on how to improve security in the city on their official website.

A great number of these proposals were on the work of the police. But to prove that nothing influences young people, at the start of his speech, the head of police Krunoslav Faber said that he just received a message that in Sisak, three 15 year olds beat up a 14 year old, who ended up in hospital.

Faber added that it is necessary to put lighting in the Ribnjak Park, and renew the closed clubs for the youth. “Every individual can help. This does not mean that they have to jump in when three people are beating somebody up, but that they can help by remembering details like registration plates and a description of the perpetrators” said Faber.

The singer Jeronim Maric, who held a protest concert that was dedicated to Luka Ritz, said that he hopes that he hopes that he will never have to write a song similar to “Surovi Grad” (raw city), that he dedicated to the boy that tragically died. He stressed that he is happy that everything passed without incidents at the concert, because he received threats before it was held.

Franjo Arapovic stressed that football associations hunt on children in primary school, and that the HNS (Croatian Football Federation) lets people as young as six join. With that he wanted to day that is maybe not the best solution, but that different workshops should be made for the young. He reminded that his generation had clubs for the young, like Kavkaz, Arabesca, and asked the authorities why those clubs are not renewed. All of the proposals that were given by interested citizens at yesterday’s plenum were recorded, and manger Dusko Ljustina added in the end that “his office for culture, education and sport were open for all every day”.