Crime, Prevention and Reduction

ZW: Hey guys! Did you all know that the crime rate in Malaysia has worsened more than 300% since year 2000 in Malaysia? ZZ: Yes! Crime is always a nuisance to our country. News of snatch theft, rape and armed robbery could be heard almost on a daily basis. CC: What is crime actually? KY: Okay. Crime is an act or omission that violates the law and is punishable upon conviction. Crime can also be defined as a deviant behaviour that violates prevailing norms. CC: Oh I see! So how does crime affect the society that we live in? ZW: In Malaysia, crime has endangered public security and peace. It has also caused millions from the governments treasury to maintain prisons.

ZZ: I agree with you. Crime has done much harm to the society. So what can we do to stop the crime rate from worsening? KY: Hmm...In preventing crimes, the crime prevention concept has been used. In its purest form, crime prevention looks at people who are not involved in criminal activity and ask, "What can we do to make sure they never come into conflict with the law?" CC: Crime prevention also looks at places and situations which are not yet troubled by much criminal activity and asks, "How can we make sure crime never becomes a significant problem here?" ZW: As we all know, crime prevention can be done through Social Development. It involves long-term, integrated actions that deal with the root causes of crime. Its aim is to reduce risk factors that start people, particularly children and youth, on the road to crime, and to build protective factors that may mitigate those risks. KY: The risk factors are also related to many other social problems, such as child abuse and neglect, drug and alcohol misuse, school failure, teenage pregnancy, and unemployment. So when people and organizations work to prevent crime they are also working to make our communities healthy, safe and sustainable in many respects.

ZZ: Let me see. Crime Prevention through Social Development works at making people healthy, responsible and resilient. It also promotes community values about non violence and respect for other people and their property, and helps young people resist peer pressure and make good decisions. CC: Youre right! Besides, Crime Prevention through Environmental Design is also an important measure. is about the places and things, the "built environment," which can be either targets of criminal activity or the location where crime takes place. The proper design, effective use and maintenance of the built environment can lead to a reduction in the incidence and fear of crime, and an improvement in quality of life. ZW: Through the effective use of CPTED principles, crime, nuisance behaviour and the fear of crime can be reduced. Application of CPTED principles to new developments also prevents future problems. ZZ: Well, crime reduction is equally important as crime prevention. The perspective or starting point for crime reduction is people, places or situations already known for criminal activity. This can be a group of offenders who have racked up a long record of assaults and robbery. It might be a residential neighbourhood that has been plagued by break-ins. This starts with assessing the current problem and developing strategies to decrease the amount of criminal activity, or minimize the harm it causes. KY: Crime reduction activities can focus on people, places or situations. As crime reduction is focused on existing criminals, crime locations and situations, it relies heavily on information or intelligence which describes those people, places and situations in great deal. CC: As an example of crime reduction, prolific offender management is a peopleoriented strategy that focuses on offenders who are seen as the generators of the most offences. Generally, about 10 per cent of offenders are believed responsible for about 50 per cent of crime. Prolific offender management projects provide health and social services to offenders. The goal is to address factors in offenders' lives that can increase their likelihood of offending, such as drug or alcohol use, and ensure an effective response when they re-offend or relapse. ZW: Next, managing major public gatherings that have a history of problems such as public intoxication, accidents and fights, is a situational strategy. Careful planning of the event from a crime reduction perspective would involve event organizers, police, municipal officials, first aid providers and others to ensure opportunities for crime are minimized, supervision and deterrence is maximized and rapid response to emergencies is available. ZZ: Targeting crime "hot spots" or geographic areas where there are high levels of crime, is primarily a place-oriented strategy. This could include increasing police presence or applying CPTED principles, such as changing traffic patterns. For example offenders who have court-ordered restrictions on where they can be, when

they can be out, and who they can associate with, may be checked by police more frequently in hot spots, thus discouraging attendance. KY: I believe that year 2013 will prove to be different if there is a real fundamental change in the running of the police force and immigration policy. Together, we can make a difference. ZW, ZZ, CC, and KY: To infinity, and beyond!