OSCE Mission to Skopje supports reopening of youth centre in Gazi Baba municipality

SKOPJE, 8 October 2008 - A youth centre supported by the OSCE Spillover Monitor Mission to Skopje, reopened today in the Gazi Baba municipality with a new schedule of activities for young people.

Initiated by a Citizens Advisory Group of school directors, parents, the mayor and local police, the centre aims to reduce juvenile delinquency and combat negative tendencies among young people, including drug abuse and violence against peers.

"The OSCE is happy to support this initiative, which emerged from communication and co-operation between community stakeholders and the local police. Such initiatives are the heart of community policing and effective crime prevention," said Ambassador Natalya Drozd, acting Head of the OSCE Mission to Skopje.

The Centre will serve as a venue for educational workshops for 700 secondary school students from seven ethnically mixed schools. The workshops will be held by police officers from Gazi Baba police station, along with experts and inspectors from the Interior Ministry.

Interior Minister Gordana Jankulovska called for parents to also get involved in the planned activities. She added: "It is exactly this type of interactive communication between secondary school students and the local police that has proven to be an excellent opportunity for overcoming concrete problems."