Crime, punishment... action!
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12:53
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draconian,
GINI,
Kishore Mahbubani,
Singapore,
Straits Times
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2
comments
You might recall an article by Kishore Mahbubani fairly recently about why Singapore is successful at dealing with crime. Recall that for illustrative anecdotal support, the dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy recounted how he was almost mugged in Switzerland.
Really? Switzerland has criminals? No kidding! The little heaven of Toblerone chocolates actually harbours shady characters – unlike Singapore, apparently. On the bright side, they were nice enough to walk away when challenged. Maybe there’s hope for the Swiss yet.
The dean then proceeded to point out an essential reason why Singapore does not have such a problem – there is no poverty in Singapore.
The eradication of poverty in Singapore is a result of a combination of many policies: economic growth and development, universal education and health care, formal and informal social safety nets. All these policies have to work together. Fortunately they do.- Kishore Mahbubani
Since some of us might well have forgotten, let’s remember the police slogan: Low Crime Doesn’t Mean No Crime. Catchy, isn’t it? Keeping that in mind, let’s reevaluate reality.
Switzerland’s Human Development Index (HDI) is ranked 10th in the world, while Singapore’s HDI is 28th. For some reason the Swiss still have a problem with crime while Singaporeans don’t.
On another note, Singapore’s GINI index is 42.5 according to 1998 data, 78th among 127 countries in income equality. And it actually rose (income inequality increased) to 48.1 in 2000. Do you think these indicate that there aren’t a sizeable number of poor people in Singapore?
While it’s nice to imagine that Singapore is a socialist utopia, let’s not kid ourselves. Probably the main reason why Singapore has a low crime level is the long arms and iron fist of the law. You face a fine of $1000 for cycling in the underpass at East Coast Park, for example. And the authorities are pretty darn good at catching people too. A woman was apparently caught and fined $30 for having a sweet in her mouth on the MRT.
Okay, let’s not deride the good job that our law enforcement is doing. After all, it must be pretty efficient to prevent all those proles from committing crimes like it’s second nature (unless they’re potential Slumdog Millionaires with long bootstraps).
Not to mention those criminal foreigners taking advantage of the busy ports to pass through Singapore.
I have come across a Latin American bag-snatching team in a Singapore restaurant... The odds are actually stacked against Singapore maintaining a low crime rate. Our port and airport are among the busiest in the world. It is only natural that a high number of potential criminals pass through Singapore. If we were an isolated island in the South Pacific, we could create an idyllic domestic environment. But we are not.- Kishore Mahbubani
Hello Mosey! I think its because Singapore's policy is deterrence and punishment whereas other countries such as the UK base their criminal law on reform.
Hey, Nikki. Thanks for your comment :D Yeah, I think so too. I'm not knowledgeable enough to comment on which is more effective, but I just wanted to point out that Mr. Mahbubani's portrayal of Singapore's issue with crime leaves something to be desired... and so does his tone.