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A controversial weapon in the war in Britain against antisocial behaviour by teens should be banned, the country's Children's Commissioner will warn in a move that threatens a new inter-government department battle over "hoodies" rights'.
The row centres on the so-called Mosquito, a £500 ($1234) device that emits a high-pitched whine loud enough to drive away teenagers in the vicinity. Marketed as the "ultrasonic teenage deterrent", it is being adopted in the UK by shopkeepers, local councils and even private homeowners to disperse gangs of young people because it operates on a frequency that can be detected only by under-25s, whose hearing is more acute.
Al Aynsley-Green, who was appointed by the Government to champion children's interests, will argue the Mosquito infringes their human rights and penalises innocent children. Parents have also questioned its effects on children's hearing.
Aynsley-Green will launch a campaign this week calling on businesses to abandon the tactic, and encouraging children to report instances of its being used against them. He is understood to be prepared to bring a test case in the courts if necessary.
However, a Home Office source said the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, backed the use of the Mosquito as a way of combating yob culture.
Gordon Brown last week cited teenage lawlessness and gang violence as a key priority for his Government and the clash over the Mosquito marks an early test. The Prime Minister had signalled a change of tack in his early months by disbanding the Respect Taskforce set up by Tony Blair to tackle yob culture, putting its staff under the control of the Department for Children and Families, which was seen as a signal that he would offer more carrot and less stick to disaffected teenagers. That approach has come under pressure with the Tories attacking the Government over levels of street violence and teen offending.
Thousands of Mosquitoes have been bought by police forces, retailers, housing associations, train companies and private individuals who want to get rid of teenagers loitering near their homes. The device consists of a black box which emits a pulsing noise several times a second over a 15m radius, loud enough to force children to leave the area within minutes.
Its manufacturers insist they have sought legal advice that it does not contravene human rights, and that very young children are not affected by it. But the civil liberties group Liberty say it is degrading and indiscriminate and targets children in a way that would provoke uproar if it were used against other groups.
Aynsley-Green is expected to argue that it infringes children's human right to free assembly, because it is used against teens in groups, and also potentially discriminates on the grounds of age.
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