"High-harm" crimes are definitely increasing, according to police.
The violent crime has turned this country into Wild West Canada. People are worried and asking all levels of governments: Have we lost control of our streets and parks?
Yes. Canadian streets and parks are getting ugly, bad and dirty, with auto accidents, careless driving — and the recent shooting of two young girls, five and nine, who were in a playground in a residential area of Scarborough during the day.
Mayor John Tory said that he wants “no stone left unturned” while dealing with this latest shooting.
“I cannot imagine the anguish the family and friends of the two girls are going through. This entire city wants these girls to make a full recovery and this entire city wants justice for them.”
Tory said the city will work with officers to bring “swift justice” to those responsible for this “heinous crime.”
Ontario premier-designate Doug Ford tweeted about the incident: “Heard about the two children shot near McCowan Road and Steeles Avenue,” he wrote. “My thoughts and prayers are with them and their families. I will be monitoring the situation closely.”
Out west, in Surrey, B.C., Jaskaran Bhangal, 17, and Jaskarn Jhutty, 16, were found dead by the side of the road with gunshot wounds.
Thousands of people and grieving families of the two teenage boys have gathered in a rally in Surrey, seeking justice.
The trend of gang violence is very serious. In Surrey six months have passed since 2018, but 22 incidents of gunfire have taken place, already.
We have seen this kind of violence in England for more than two-and-a-half decades. Now we see it in Vancouver on a regular basis.
In the past few years, such a trend has started to appear here in the Greater Toronto Area.
Student fight activity is growing in Brampton.
Paviter Singh Bassi, 21, was beaten to death with sticks at Sandalwood Heights Secondary School according to police.
Economic, social and cultural aspects contribute to the problem. Many immigrants come to new countries between the ages of 12 to 14. Others are born in Canada and some belong to the rich families.
They are not related to each other, but often jealousy and ego cause friction.
Some of them work and study hard to make their lives successful. Others lack knowledge and funds, get stressed out, and end up meeting with wrong groups, such as gangsters and drug dealers and begin drinking. Then there's shootings.
Later, they become the biggest headache, not only for the community, but also for the country.
Governments and communities need to work together to solve the problem. One truth about Surrey is that there are only 800 police officers for population 517,887, while there are more than 1,500 officers in this city with a population of more than 300,000.
In March, Federal Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale presented the bill 71 in Parliament to make changes to the gun laws. There was no mention about street violence and gangs
First of all, to get rid of any problem, you have to first accept it. Accepting the problem for the federal, provincial, and local governments will be a step toward solving the problem.
It’s true that aftermath every mass shooting, “we immediately revert to discussions of gun law, and only gun law,” but access to guns is only part of the culture that gives rise to such atrocities.
Here John Tory doing the same, things have gone out of control "The unacceptable gun violence from few weeks incredibly made mayor angry, now he wants to hire 200 police officers and want to a discussion of gun Law.
So, Mayor Tory met PM Trudeau to grapples with gun crime and refugees burden. Trudeau willing to support refugees and to combat the gun and gang violence that is currently gripping the city.
Same, Premier Ford acknowledged that more needs to be done to tackle the ongoing violence.
According to the Metro Toronto Police date from January 1st to July 6th 209 shootings and 53 killed in the GTA area.
Yes! Guns are a tool. Guns in themselves are not dangerous. It’s the idiots who load them and use them that are dangerous.
The problem is that controlling the type of weapon, and the availability of weapons is the only way from stopping those irresponsible members of the public from killing each other and innocent members of the public.
“How many families must be torn apart before we take action? How many children are going to get shot in the parks while playing we acknowledge that Canada is facing a crisis? The connection between domestic violence and gun violence is horrifying and devastating. We’ve tolerated a system that makes it all too easy for dangerous people, like domestic abusers, to get their hands on a gun and turn it on the ones they are supposed to love.
The Politicians who offer thoughts and prayers but refuse to discuss the gun laws answer to the gun lobby, not the voters, and, shamefully, not to the victims and their families. Sympathy for victims of gun violence has its place, but we need not offer it as though we have no other options. We don’t have to live this way. We need the safety on our streets and parks and Canadians.
Prayer certainly has its place in a society plagued with violence, but “faith without work is dead.” No matter how sincere the thoughts and prayers, they are meaningless if we fail to follow up with necessary action she added.
SOLUTIONS FOR REDUCING THE EPIDEMIC:
Research indicates that mostly our youths getting into bad habits such as drug, drinking, and Guns Gang groups. After they get high on the drug, they act what they excessive exposure to gun violence through movies, TV, and video -Xbox games, whatever they watch and play they are behaving same violently toward others.
They may come to accept violence as a way to resolve conflict, imitating what they see in media and identifying with violent characters. Kids are also traumatized by witnessing real gun violence in their communities when youths have access to guns, especially semiautomatic killing machines — the results are often tragic.
If we look more closely, many youth gun or stabbing, or stick fight accident happens, they were related to Mental health. If we see all this as a mental perspective, one solution is obvious: limiting access to guns. Many of the modern countries do not allow their citizens access to weapons, handguns, semiautomatic assault, and high-capacity magazines.so why not Canada ban the guns?
GUN SAFETY: REDUCE THE CULTURE OF SAFETY
If anybody arrested with the possession of any weapon with intent to commit an indictable offense is a possible life sentence.
Reduce easy access to any harmful and dangerous weapons.
Police must Establish a culture of gun safety.
Specially Reduce access to youth and individuals who are at risk of harming themselves or others (if you got someone especially suffering mental condition)
Hold the gun industry accountable and ensure there is adequate oversight over the marketing and sales of guns and ammunition.
Engage responsible gun dealers and owners in solutions.
No matter what, Insist on mandatory training and licensing for owners.
In the end: “We need lawmakers at every level to stand up and show the courage to act. We need them to embrace the Canadian spirit that has led us to solve big problems before—and stop the devastation unleashed by gun violence. This violence can end. But that will require politicians to open their eyes, stop ignoring the Canadian people, and take responsibility for making our communities safer.”
At the same time, the Punjabi community needs to work together to support the police and governments to control these kinds of shootings, stabbings and stick fights on our streets and in our parks and plazas.
Before any other Jaskaran or Jaskarn or other of our kids get shot in a parking lots and end up losing their lives.
Brampton-based Surjit Singh Flora is a veteran journalist and freelance writer.
