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South Africa is one of the most “unsafe” countries: Law and Order index

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South Africa is the sixth least secure country out of the 142 countries with an index value of 58,   that’s according to the Gallup 2018 Global Law and Order report.

“South Africans, by international standards, feel very insecure its score is not anomalously low for the SADCC region. Botswana (with an index value of 61) is the ninth least secure country while Zambia (62) comes in at 13 from the bottom,” the statement reads.

The Global Law and Order Index is an annual survey conducted by Gallup.  The aim of the survey is to check how safe people are in their countries.

Countries where residents feel more secure get a higher index value. Of all 142 countries residents of Singapore feel the safest and have confidence in their local police. That country receives the highest index value (97).

Three Nordic countries (Norway, Iceland and Finland) are the next most secure and each get an index value of 93.

The least secure residents are those of crisis-ridden Venezuela (44), Afghanistan (45) and South Sudan (54). The results imply that the economic and political crisis in Venezuela has had a greater impact on perceptions than the war has on Afghans.

The map below shows the index values across the world. Areas shown in white are closed countries where the survey did not take place (North Korea, Cuba, Saudi Arabia etc.)

Despite the generally low scores for the SADCC region Africa is not the least secure region. That title goes to Latin American and the Caribbean. This region, as a whole, gets an index value of 62 (the same as Zambia) while sub-Saharan Africa gets an index value of 68.

Gallup points out that insecurity suppresses social cohesion and negatively impacts on economic development. If this is the case the results bode ill for countries like South Africa, Venezuela and Afghanistan

The Law and Order Questions asked in the survey

  • In the city or area where you live, do you have confidence in the local police force?
  • Do you feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area where you live?
  • Within the last 12 months, have you had money or property stolen from you or another household member?
  • Within the past 12 months, have you been assaulted or mugged?

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