Views concerning neighbourhood watch in Malta

Abstract

Policing has an integral part in maintaining social control. Throughout the years, policing has evolved from the concept of traditional policing to modern policing by the introduction of new policing schemes. Although crime itself is inevitable, new ways of policing act in a proactive manner to anticipate and deter potential crime from happening. The Malta Police Force dates to the 19th century when Malta was a British Colony under the legislature of Sir Thomas Maitland. In fact, this makes the Malta Police Force one of the oldest policing entities in Europe. In 2019, the Malta Police Force together with the Ministry of Justice introduced the concept of Community Policing in the Maltese Islands. Community Policing has become an important tool in the Maltese context, so much so that it should be introduced to every locality in the Maltese Islands by 2023 (Malta Police Force, n.d). The focus of this research is the Neighbourhood Watch, a system which is inextricably linked with Community Policing and Reassurance Policing. These are systems where the police modus operandi hinges on offering reassurance through their presence in the community - visibility, familiarity and accessibility to the public. Neighbourhood Watch is an American based policing strategy, where groups of people within a neighbourhood work together to conduct surveillance of their own neighbourhood whilst communicating with law enforcement officials in situations of emergencies, lawlessness and misconduct. The research, which sought to gain an informed insight regarding the introduction of the Neighbourhood Watch scheme, is based on a qualitative analysis of data gathered from a number of participants from the general public. One-to-one interviews helped the researcher formulate themes for further thorough analysis of the research question.