AFL Cape York

The Far North's cops have two new weapons in their crime prevention arsenal.  Cairns police officially launched the Woree Neighbourhood Watch at Woree State High School last night.

Cairns District crime prevention officer Sen-Constable Heidi Marek said Neighbourhood Watch was about working together as a community to promote safety, security and quality of life for all residents.

Neighbourhood Watch seeks to reduce the number of offences by improving personal safety and household or building security, reporting suspicious activity within neighbourhoods and ensuring property is marked for identification.

The Woree group joins other committees from across Cairns, including Trinity Park, Freshwater, Edge Hill, Whitfield, Trinity Beach, Mooroobool and Forest Gardens.  Also yesterday, the Cairns Indigenous Coordination Centre launched its Kids Living Safer Lives initiative at Westcourt in a bid to improve relations between children and police. 

Former Cairns detective John Harris, who is also the chairman of Crime Stoppers, said the program is about reporting crime, violence and abuse against children and families,

He said it also was about building positive role models in indigenous communities.  The Kids Living Safer Lives program will be delivered as a priority into welfare reform communities at Hope Vale, Aurukun, Coen and Mossman Gorge and also extending to Lockhart River, Pormpuraaw and Kowanyama.

Mr Harris said intervention and prevention strategies for the program included Be Strong Be Heard, Crime Stoppers, Safe Hands and AFL Cape York.

Be Strong Be Heard will be delivered in communities through workshops that aims to provide knowledge of law and skills for people to report and progress complaints of child abuse and neglect.