Are UK riots the work of criminals?

The vandalism, looting and arson that has gripped London and spread to other cities has taken the British public by surprise.

However, those in tune with the economic situation in the UK and the Tory government spending cuts will tell you this was a time bomb. It was only a matter of time.

While the riots are quite scary and have even escalated to mugging, they’re some who say there’s a sense of excitement about what’s going on in England.

England is beginning to resemble Greece, Tunisia, and other countries that have witnessed recent uprisings due to the state of the economy.

Now, if I remember correctly, the uprising in Tunisia was sparked off by a young man setting himself a blaze because he was being arrested for selling vegetables by the roadside; his alternate means for employment as he couldn’t find work.

Although the riots in London were set off by an apparent gunfire exchange between the police and a young man, it was just a trigger that the rioting youth needed to vent out their frustrations that stem from the economic conditions here and the lack of jobs.

Many of the politicians who have spoken on television and radio have condemned the riots and termed it as opportunistic criminal behaviour.

The MP for Tottenham (where the riots first broke out) David Lammy described the looters as mindless youth.

It seems pretentious, as a government, on the one hand to support youth protests in other countries calling them uprisings while terming riots in its country as gang crime.

Is it that this government fails to see a similarity to Tunisia or Egypt in terms of a ruling class that is making the prospects of the lower class much dimmer?

The youth here have no jobs, government spending cuts to the public sector have seen many lose their jobs, and the recent university fee increase now leaves these young people with no hope of getting higher education.

Former London mayor Ken Livingston said that this is the first time since World War II where young people in this country are in a situation where they have no hope of finding work, buying a house and even getting an education.

Some would argue that there are youth, who also have no jobs but have not taken to the streets.

However, this is a percentage of the youth who have no hope at all and perhaps feel like they have nothing to lose.

Ms Kemoli is an intern at the BBC World Service Trust, London.