Dear Editor,
I am writing to express my view about whether the government should ban children under 16 from internet cafés after midnight.
The purpose for the government to implement the café ban is to fight youth crime. They believe that banning youngsters under 16 from internet cafes can avoid them from meeting and staying with gangsters who might recruit them to the triad society. This can passively prevent youth from committing crimes.
There are advantages of implementing the café ban. Firstly, it prevents the youth from making friends with gangsters. Many teenagers enjoy playing games with different net friends in the internet cafes. They feel relaxed and entertaining killing time with peers having the same interest. However, triad society members also love to loiter in those game centres. They gathered there since it is easy to recruit new members, especially in the evening as others cannot discover their activities easily. The café ban can prevent teens from meeting bad company and going astray, and hence reduce youth crimes.
Besides, the café ban can stop teenagers from lingering in the internet cafes. They may have no place to go to and return home instead. Parents do not need to worry about where their children have gone to. Spending more time at home, youngsters have more chances to interact with their family members and develop better relationship with them.
However, there is a disadvantage of introducing the café ban. The law can only stop the youth from staying inside the café at midnight, but they can still stay outdoors. Teens may still choose not to go home but wonder outside. They may move to other spots such as basketball courts or public parks. There might still be opportunities for them to make bad friends. They might join the gangs and get involved in unlawful deals like drug trafficking and fighting. The problem of youth crime is still not solved.
I think the café ban is not the best way but one of them to fight youth crime. We cannot say that the ban is useless, but I believe that the most effective solution is to strengthen the family education. The government should educate the parents on how to care about their children and encourage the harmony of family relationship. Teens usually prefer hanging out with friends rather than staying at home because of bad `family relationship or disapproval from parents. Keeping the peaceful atmosphere of the family is the most effective way to fight youth crime. If the youngsters know that their parents love them, they will not commit crimes to disappoint them.
Yours faithfully
Chris Wong
Chris Wong