Caution against gang ban

best thing to do is tell the public including parents of children who are in gangs... facts... that some of their members deal 'p', give it to children in the form of sweets, teens using dipped marijuana cigaretts and other type tactics. the gangs involved are all sorts, are sometimes killa beez, sometimes headhunters, sometimes mongrel mobs, black power cripps etc, most of thes gangs are supplied by other underground gangs. doesnt matter really only thing gang members and their families should ask themselves is ... is it okay to belong to groups where some people sell drugs like p to little children?, persoanlly i think all organisations which use criminal activities and turn a blind eye to the bad stuff is wrong. Therefore only cowards or or emotionally starved people turn to gangs and other groups, i include soem church groups. Parents and grandparents need to stop kids when they are young and be strict. And GIVE THEM TIME. signed an expert.

What is a gang, corporate thieves, finance companies,even oil companys what about paua poachers there are laws to deal with the patched members the jails are full of them as for the others they seem to get away with it.

i completely agree with you there brendan, you can legalise anything but just because its illegal doesnt mean its gona stop the gangs

Gosh, there's some heady racism today!

Banning gangs is a terrible idea, for the reasons Mr. Gillbert said. It won't achieve a thing, and it's just going to end up in more increased violence and hostilities. And honestly, what do you hope to achieve by putting all gang members in jail, Ebaraga? It seems kind of counter-intuitive to group them in with hundreds of other gang members, for more or less no reason, for extended periods of time. And we'd be paying for their survival in jail via tax anyway.

The real issue is that a gang can be designated illegal on the "advice of the police". Within existing legislation a gang is defined as a gathering of 3 or more people. So, is it groups made up of criminals or criminal groups! Either way if you fall into the class of "gang" on the opinion of the police you can be subject to control orders of non-association.

Non-association orders are usually conditions imposed by judges when granting bail. That means for the people to which the conditions apply have been charged with a crimial offence (e.g non association with a co-offender). Not yet convicted or acquitted, but accused. A persons opinion is not enough to impose such conditions, they are subject to strict tests, an on application they can be removed or changed. The duration of such coonditions is until conviction or acquittal, or unless the condition reamains as part of sentencing, but either way once you have served your time thats it.

It is a severe breach of the NZ Bill of Rights Act to impose such conditions on any member of the public. Prevention is a great concept, but should not impose on FREEDOM OF CHOICE. Reminds me of a certain Tom Cruise film......

The Majority of criminals are not a member of any 'gang' and the prime minister and corrections minister is well aware of this. But by only invoking fear in the general public would they allow such breaches to occur.

The reality is any 3 people on the opinion of the police could be classed as a gang and designated illegal, subject to a control order, not allowed to associate with the other two. So, this other associate could be your brother Well, watchout! No xmas lunch at mums otherwise you could be charged with breaching such orders and face 5 years jail! Think about it..............

erina - maori bashing? yeah right. gangs are all colours and creeds, and you are being just as racist as you are suggesting the the lawkmakers are being inferring that asians gangs are the worst.

Ban them, it's long overdue. I support 110% the comments made by Ebarage #4; these skanks are a total waste, and a drain on our society. As for weak gutted PC brigade who like to harp on about you can't just keep on locking them up; YES you can,if that's what it takes, that's what we do. As for Labour; all of a sudden leading this charge, after 9 years in charge of govt,doesn't really feel right, a bit of pre-election spin!!!. We can just hope the National Party will have the fortitude to push forward with this.

To Erina Loo,

Please explain where in the article it says Maori? Your comments are offensive to Maori, Asians and Pakeha. Please get your facts right before making public your personal assumptions.

We can ban gangs, and have all the anti gang laws uner the sun.

This however wont stop gangs forming and committing crime, and our young joining gangs.

Unless our laws are backed up by the judiciary, with real punishment (not a slap over the wrist with a wet bus ticket), and we provide real alternatives for young from troubled homes and limited prospects, then I suspect this is all just election year hot air.

Come on Labour - You have had nine years, sorry to late now, get out your CV's and start looking applying for other jobs.

"So, within these groups, do individuals commit crimes or do they work together to commit crimes?"

In the case of the Police both of these statments are true, will they be banned ?