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London: Fear is the new commodity gangs in London deal in and it will be a long time before the recent escalation in violence is reversed, say experts who work with young people.
Following a recent spate of stabbings, politicians have gone into overdrive to come up with solutions amid high profile tales of teenagers dying on the streets of the capital.
Suggestions
Jail for everyone caught with a knife and forcing offenders to see for themselves the effect of stabbings are just two of the suggestions put forward.
On Monday, Prime Minister Gordon Brown vowed to get tough and ensure those with weapons are punished while also providing help for 20,000 families whose children are out of control.
But those who work with youngsters involved in gangs say that while such proposals have merits, there is no short-term solution to a problem they say the government and authorities ignored for far too long.
"We're seeing the consequences of government and statutory organisations not listening to the warning signs from grass roots community groups," said Uanu Seshmi of the From Boyhood to Manhood Foundation, which helps boys in south London.
"We warned them years ago that this type of behaviour would happen in the future," he said.
Many of the strategies to tackle knife crime focus on deterrent. Conservative leader David Cameron says the only way to stop people carrying weapons is to lock up anyone caught with a knife.
But that ignores the reality, says Junior Smart who runs the SOS Gangs Project in south London which helps former offenders aged 18 to 25. He said gangs are seen as "sexy".
"The young kids that I'm working with aren't scared of prisons, they aren't scared of the police," he said.
"Fear is the new drug on the streets, it's the new commodity. It's not necessarily about who you are and what crew you belong to, it's what you do and who does what first.
"They are living up to this hype and that's what's making it very dangerous."
We're seeing the consequences of government and statutory organisations not listening to the warning signs from grass roots community groups."
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