Townhall Focuses On Crime Prevention

The Chinese community’s contribution to the city is nothing short of extraordinary,” Chief Bill Blair said, at the annual Chinese Community Consultative Committee (CCCC) town hall meeting on Nov. 5 at the Chinese Christian Mission Centre in Agincourt Mall

“This community has always been, and will always remain, one of our strongest partners in keeping this a safe and liveable city,” he said.

“In that partnership, I think it’s important that we always take the opportunity to come together and discuss issues that are important to the community. I know that, sometimes, the newspapers are filled with news of violence and terrible crimes, but the reality of most of our lives in this city is that we are concerned about the safety of our children and our families.”

Several officers made presentations, including Consts. Gary Gomez and Victor Lai of 42 Division, who addressed traffic safety.

“While we have made incredible progress in Toronto in reducing crime and victimization, so far this year 50 people have lost their lives in traffic-related accidents in our city,” Blair said.

“Tragically, the majority of those traffic fatalities are elderly pedestrians who have difficulty crossing our roadways. They are now at greater risk because they don’t move as fast as they used to… I am always so sad when I see a preventable tragedy in our city and so we ask for your help in preventing them.”

Det. Heather Nichols, of 52 Division’s domestic violence and family service office, spoke about domestic violence and its impact on communities.

“It’s doesn’t discriminate and it’s everywhere,” she said.

“However, the victims of domestic violence are usually women and over 90 per cent of charges laid are against male offenders. On average, the Toronto Police respond to 24,000 domestic violence calls annually. That is, however, not an indication of how many victims there are out there because there’s a stigma to reporting domestic violence. The idea that it is a private family matter is wrong. It’s a criminal offence in Canada and we are undertaking public speaking events like this to implore the public to report it.”

Supt. Dave McCormack and Ben Lau are the CCCC co-chairs.

“Knowledge is power, so we want to be able to give you all the knowledge so that you can have the power to take control of situations,” McCormack told the audience.