Twenty-three policemen were injured in Paceville incidents during the past 10 months, Assistant Police Commissioner Raymond Zammit has told the parliamentary Social Affairs Committee.

Discussing the issue of security in this nightlife hub, Mr Zammit said that more than 200 serious irregularities, including cases of aggravated theft and grievous bodily harm, had been reported.

The number of policemen on patrol in Paceville has been increased to 25, with other plain clothes policemen patrolling the area on the lookout for drugs, he said. Members of the Special Assignment Group (SAG) were also on duty.

Mr Zammit said that the number of policemen, including those stationed in fixed points, was enough for the area.

However, Labour MP Carmelo Abela disagreed, saying that 25 policemen during the weekend were not enough because the number of people in Paceville at the weekend could rise to 25,000 at any one time. He said that the courts should come down heavily on those who attacked policemen on duty – a suggestion also voiced by Mark Grima from the Paceville Commercial Association and the mayor of St Julian's Peter Bonello.

Mr Zammit said that the rate of criminal offences had increased because of the large number of thefts of mobile phones, principally the result of negligence on the part of the owners. The police had also made progress in curbing thefts by foreigners, especially Romanians.

Referring to noise pollution, Mr Zammit said the law was not clear enough as to what constituted "excessive noise". There were cases where the noise was very loud inside the establishment but could not be heard from the outside.

Dr Anthony Farrugia, on behalf of the group for action for security in Paceville (GASP), claimed that the majority of problems in the area could be solved by the presence of well-trained policemen having the necessary resources. He said that incidents of violence, lack of hygiene, vandalism and parking could be solved with greater police presence. He complained that there no public toilets in Paceville.

Fr Saviour Grima from the Millenium Chapel welcomed the increase in the number of policemen patrolling the area. However, he noted, most of them were still immature despite their efforts. He said that police morale suffered if they were not trained.

He complained of students littering the church parvis with broken bottles and tins. Underage youths sold drinks from pitchers and got drunk. There were cases where young people refilled empty lemonade bottles with whisky and vodka.

Fr Saviour said there was also a problem of anger management in schools with children manifesting their anger against society during the weekend. There was the need of an education campaign on binge drinking, alcohol abuse and violent behaviour to raise parents' awareness of the real situation. At the same time parents should be encouraged to teach their children to behave more responsibly.

There was also the need of a new traffic management system with at least another exit from Paceville.

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