Friends pitch in to help protect security

TALIA JACOBS

NSW POLICE assistant commissioner Peter Dein launched a new project aimed at improving Jewish community security last week.

Established by the Council for Jewish Community Security NSW, the new group, Friends of Communal Security, will support the Communal Security Group (CSG) and the Jewish Emergency Management Plan (JEMP).

More than 150 community members attended the launch at Central Synagogue where they heard an address by Dein, who is also head of the NSW Police Counter Terrorism and Special Tactics Command.

Friends of Communal Steering Committee chairman Ivan Chait also addressed the audience.

Chait explained the initiative had been established to support the operational arms of the Council for Jewish Community Security NSW, including the CSG and JEMP.

“Our role is to support the council and its volunteers by being advocates for the council, providing forums to educate and inform the community on relevant security related matters, and a variety of support activities, including support to the JCA campaign, which is the principal [funding body] of the day-to-day operations of the CSG,” Chait said.

“Membership briefings by security experts, such as at tonight’s [launch], will be held to provide the community with reliable, up-to-date information on security matters,” he said.

Council for Jewish Community Security chairman Peter Wise emphasised the Friends of Communal Security would “act as a mechanism for members of the community in general to be more aware of security matters”.

“We hope that this initiative will lead to an improvement in our general communal security, by virtue of awareness and general support for the cause,” said Wise.