Question For Kiwis about crime:?

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Rubix Cube

As a New Zealander living in Australia I do see where you are coming from. Some things I say may offend people and I don't mean too so I apologise in advance if you are offended.

1. First of all, not ALL kiwis complain about the crime in NZ. Most of my family live there and not one of them mentions crime let alone complains about it. It isn't apart of their everyday life. The worst thing that happend was to my Aunty. She woke up in the middle of the night and there was a Maori women stealing pot plants out of the garden lol. She then ran off when she saw my Aunty. That's pretty much about it.

But yes, as you say people DO seem to complain about crime alot. Reason being, New Zealand is a small nation with a relativly small population. They just don't like to hear those types of things happening in a small country.

Another reason is, believe it or not, I think it has something to do with the land size. For example, I live in Queensland which is a HUGE state. Let's say someone is raped in Cairns. The chances of me hearing about it on the Gold Coast are slim. Lets say two people are found dead in a house in Mount Isa. It may get a mention on the news, but it certainly wouldn't be enough for people to say 'look at how violent our state is'.

If it were in NZ, let's say someone was murdered in Auckland. And someone was raped in Wellington. On the news it would be like 'violent night across nz: girl murdered, women raped. This would, as you can appreciate, lead people to make the conclusion that NZ is so violent for a small country.

But it really isn't. YES, they do have quite a large number of social problems, particualy relating to child abuse, but the nation has a population larger than Queensland.

The fact is, you would hear about it more in NZ then you would in Australia because the place is so big! NZ is tiny in comparison.

Yet another reason would be because in 1950 there were 2 murders in New Zealand. Nowadays there are around 50 a year. Doesn't sound like much but when it's constantly on the news because there isn't really much else to talk about it becomes engraved into people's heads.

I 100% agree with you when you say Australia's crime rate is higher.

This is the murder rate.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita

Australia is 43rd while NZ is 52nd. It also takes population into account.

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_bur_percap-crime-burglaries-per-capita

Australia is the worst in the world for burgalries and it again is worse than NZ. The only thing New Zealand seems to be worse in is in assults and even then it's not by much.

So the guy who said the crime rates are around the same is wrong I'm afraid. You're actually the one who is right.

2. I'm almost certain that Australia and New Zealand are as tough as each other on criminal laws.

New Zealanders think that ozzie is tougher however I don't believe this is the case.

http://www.act.org.nz/news/it%E2%80%99s-time-to-get-tough-on-crime-%E2%80%93-act

Yes there are some situations were the police don't respond, but as I say NZ is a small nation and the fact that police did not respond would make the news.

3. They care so much about what happens because as I said, it's a small nation and there really isn't anything to talk about. I have friends from South Africa (a nation where there are around 90 murders a DAY!) who said they never even spoke about crime back home in day to day life. It's because South Africa is a land with 50 million people so naturally there would be OTHER things to talk about besides the crime.

The guy before me who said he knew 6 people who have been murdered? That's terrible. I personally wouldn't think that's possible in nz but if you're stories true than perhaps. I certainly don't know anyone in nz who has been murdered and neither do my family but I can tell you plenty of stories about here in Australia.

But getting back to what I was saying New Zealanders DO care about what happens. I think this is because they are caring people. Most of them don't like to see people get hurt. Yes, most of the time it's not to people they know, but that doesn't go to say that they shouldn't care. I don't think Australians care as much becasue again, it's a big country. Who cares if someone is murdered over in Perth? Who cares if someone was shot in Sydney? That's the Australian attitude to things where as in NZ it would be like "someone got shot in Auckland,,,, how terrible!". Do you see what I'm saying?

4. I believe laws need to be even tougher, not just for New Zealand but for around the world. If I had my way, I would send all the crims in nz to an island in the middle of no were.

The police in Australia can be corrupt. As you say, there are lots of Australians who simply don't care what happens in their nation. That doesn't mean that some NZ'S dont care, it just means that there are more New Zealanders who do care. New Zealand is a beautiful country adn the residents want tougher laws to put the 'scum' away that ruin their beautiful country, and yes it is beautiful.

5. New Zealanders don't want to be like Australias in the regaurd to crime. They want to do something about it so that they can keep their nation safe.

Australia is a racist country believe it or not. It has a very violent past. I have watched countless documentaries where innocent aboriginal women were raped and murdered. Where they were burried in sand the heads of them were sticking out of the ground and the white settlers used their heads as rugby kick offs. That is to say kicking off their heads. Disgusting, yes!

But do many Austrailans know about this? Of course they don't.

That is why New Zealand wants to get tough on crime. So they don't become like Australia, a nation were most of the population live in denial about their hidious past.

A nation were your typical Aussie is a white working class male. Not all Australians are like this. What about the roles of women in history? What about the roles of Aboriginals? Why aren't we taught the Aboriginal way of the settlement of Australia? We are taught that it was a peaceful settlement by heroic men. When infact it was a brutal invasion. And not only men settled the place, but so did women.

Australia is a nation that tries to hide things in it's past. I'm sorry but they are the facts.

Thanks for your question and I hope I have helped.

Thanks again :)

Tainruadh

1. What's with Australians always complaining about New Zealanders? Why would we want to be like Australians? The World likes us, they don't like you so much.

2. When something happens in New Zealand it seems personal because NZ is a small country and chances are you know someone involved. In my life in NZ I personally knew 6 people that were murdered over the years and had other crimes happen within earshot or right down the road. The other side to that is that New Zealanders as a nation are bonded as a group in a way that Australians are just not, we act like a family of 4 million, we take it personally because we pride ourselves on our low crime rate.When someone gets hurt it is like a family member getting hurt because we are all from the same tribe called New Zealand.

Example: In 2007 Wellington had its first murder in two years and people didn't get scared, we got down right indignant and we were like get the b**t**d before he gets away and lock him up. Our attitude to violent crime is to wipe it out. Call it being proactive.

3. I don't think Australia is particularly tough on criminals, but your crime rate is not higher, its practically the same as NZ and both countries have low crime rates. However Indonesia is a safer country with a much lower crime rate than either NZ or Oz. I do think that Australians don't care enough about crime because you are blase about it, and your cops used to be very corrupt. Plus there isn't the same sort of community cohesion as NZ has. NZ cops are generally and traditionally very honest and well intentioned. They don't like leaving murders, rapes and violent crime unsolved.

4. We want tougher laws because we don't think 8 years (with parole) is long enough to spend in prison for Murder, which is what was happening until the last government introduced tougher sentencing.

5. We don't care about the tax cost, we want dangerous people off the street. Put em away and then we can have safer streets.

sueby40

Interesting question....What is causing the increase in horrific crimes in New Zealand and even the world? Who wants these horrible crimes happening on their doorstep?
There's a couple of reasons...I feel television is causing an increase in the sort of horrible crimes, such as rapes and murders we're seeing, as they are commonplace on a lot of television shows.
Children see TV as their role model more and more. Also boys without good male role models are looking to gangs for leadership and their role models...which is the cool thing in America and NZs' lost youth are following suit - quite often these kids have a horrible home life where they are physically and mentally abused and will turn to crime.....The statistics will only go up as home life around the world falls apart.

All-American Rejects

Im guessing you have never been to NZ?

kiwi

You sound like a winging ausy thats why you live on the west island

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