Renewing the aight Against organised crime from the bottom up: citizenship, youth, and democracy in the face of a growing threat
Organised crime is no longer a hidden phenomenon operating on the margins of the system. In Europe, criminal networks operate with alarming sophistication, infiltrating economies, corrupting institutions, and undermining the daily lives of millions of people.
The situation is critical: organised crime does not only kill or traffic—it quietly buys influence, destabilises local governments, displaces communities from their territories, and captures legitimate economic opportunities. Its power now extends into cyberspace, where cyberattacks, online scams, and child sexual exploitation are rapidly multiplying.
In response to this threat, the European Union has recently defined its strategic priorities for the 2026–2029 period under the EMPACT framework (European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats), focusing on dismantling networks, tackling online crime, fighting drug trafficking, and addressing economic crime, among others. This agenda is a necessary step—but not a sufficient one.
We need a renewed strategy that starts from the ground up. The response cannot be limited to police repression or large-scale international operations. It is urgent to build civic resistance to organised crime, capable of protecting democracy in everyday life: in neighbourhoods, in classrooms, on social media, in local media, and within municipal institutions.
To achieve this, citizens must no longer be seen merely as victims or bystanders. Communities are key actors in preventing crime, rebuilding public trust, and creating social, cultural, and economic alternatives that undermine the appeal of criminal networks—especially among young people.
New generations must be placed at the heart of this strategy—not only as targets of awareness campaigns, but as agents of change. It is time to foster youth who understand the dynamics of organised crime, who defend the rule of law, who challenge the normalisation of corruption and violence, and who lead initiatives for social justice, ethical economies, and democratic participation.
There are inspiring examples: networks of municipalities promoting mafia-free economies, schools teaching remembrance and resistance to crime, young people using art or digital activism to dismantle narratives of criminal power. But these initiatives require institutional support, sustained resources, and public visibility.
Fighting organised crime also means defending the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, justice, freedom, and democracy. It means ensuring safe and just living conditions for all, as enshrined in Sustainable Development Goal 16: to promote peaceful and inclusive societies, ensure access to justice, and build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.
Unless the fight is renewed from below, no strategy will endure. Organised crime feeds on silence, despair, and inequality. In response, we need a Europe mobilised from its neighbourhoods, its schools, its youth, and its active citizenry. The battle against mafias is not won only at borders or in courtrooms—it is also won in public squares, in classrooms, and in our shared democratic culture.
