Who wants to know what the crime registered in Portugal, by all criminal police organs (OPC), You can search on the page Justice Statistics or in the annual internal security report (Perhaps), However you can also search Google because you are sure to find several news about the crime numbers you are looking for, adjusted to your interests and according to your security perceptions.
Rogério COPETO
Colonel of the GNR, Master in Law and Security and Homeland Security Auditor
Director of the National Association of Guard Officers
In April 2016, in the article titled “The crime statistics", I addressed the subject, For reason do rasi of 2015, and the various articles released at the time, giving account of the increase or decrease in crimes, according to the possible different readings, where the main conclusion was that in 2015 They were more committed crimes, in which 2014, knowing that some types of crimes increased, others decreased and still others, They were made for the first time in 2015, since the respective conduits were not criminalized in 2014, these conclusions may have led to a decrease in the sense of security in 2015, by the population, with the aggravating that the increase in crime had not happened since 2008.
We also made a point of differentiating “denounced crimes” from “participated crimes”, being the first, those that result from the complaints of citizens and the seconds, as those that are the result of OPC operational activity and taking into account the large areas in the Penal Code: crimes against people; crimes against property; Crimes against cultural identity and personal integrity; crimes against life in society; crimes against the state; crimes against pets, and; crimes under separate legislation.
Mostly crimes cons from people and against heritage, recorded by the OPC, are the result of complaints made by citizens, the “denounced crimes” and those resulting from operational activity, They are mainly those that include the state crime, against society and those provided for in separate legislation, The “Participated Crimes”, the first ones are those that contribute to the increase of the feeling of insecurity and the seconds enhance the feeling of security, concluding so, that prevention work should be focused on reducing crimes against property and against individuals, should the crime statistics, First of all, refer to crimes against property and against individuals, increased or decreased, compared to the same period under consideration, not analyzed, the total number of recorded crimes increased or decreased, because it results in a reductive analysis.
With regard to the types of crime that most influences the sense of security of people, They fit the crimes against people or against heritage, And we can consider that they are the so -called “violent crimes”, like homicides, Thefts, offenses to physical integrity and sexual violence, as having a greater psychological impact on security perception, because these crimes involve direct threat to physical and emotional integrity, generating fear in victims, even in everyday situations.
Crimes as violations, kidnapping or serious aggressions create a feeling of vulnerability, especially in more exposed groups, as women, elderly or children, armed robberies or assaults on homes, affect the feeling of personal security and in the home itself, whose OCS amplification generates a risk perception disproportionate to reality.
The presence of gangs or conflicts using white or fire weapons in urban areas, creates a climate of widespread insecurity, even for those who are not directly involved, however crimes such as thefts or burlas, usually impact less on the feeling of security, unless they are recurrent in a particular community.
Subjective factors such as gender, age, personal experiences and the local context also shape this perception, namely women often report greater fear of sexual violence, even in regions with low statistical incidence, in some regions, Systemic corruption crimes, can also undermine trust in institutions, indirectly affecting the sense of security.
In short, Although the criminal reality is multifaceted, Crimes that involve direct threat to life and freedom are the ones that most contribute to the sense of insecurity in the population, the increase in crime, alone, may tend to contribute to the reduction of the feeling of security, But this relationship is not automatic or linear, therefore the perception of insecurity depends on factors that go beyond statistical numbers, involving psychological aspects, social and cultural.
That is why, If there is a real growth of crimes, especially violent or visible, people start witnessing or experiencing more risky situations, as, If a community records more theft, robberies or homicides, Residents perceive greater vulnerability in everyday, as well as when crimes are more frequent, generating the feeling that “no one is safe”, even if only a portion of the population is directly affected.
As already referred to the sensational or repetitive media coverage of crimes can amplify fear, even when the real increase in crime is not significant, Because news about violent crimes are more recorded in memory, leading people to overestimate the likelihood of being victims, the viralization in social networks of isolated cases, creates the illusion that violence is “everywhere”.
Similarly, some crimes disproportionately affect the sense of security because they represent a breakdown of social order, such as residence robberies, because they violate the space considered “sacred”, home, generating collective trauma, as well as crimes against children or elderly, for reaching the notion of protection to the most vulnerable groups, being the crimes of terrorism or massacres, those who most threaten the sense of control, even if they are rare events.
Also the subjective and contextual factors, how personal experiences can influence the feeling of security, because those who have been a victim of crimes or know victims tend to feel more afraid, regardless of statistics, as well as distrust in institutions, where the police or the judiciary are seen as ineffective, the increase in crime may reinforce the idea that “nothing will be done”, as well as inequality and social exclusion, because in regions of extreme poverty or segregation, The feeling of abandonment by the state intensifies insecurity, even without sudden changes in crime rates.
Concluding that the increase in general crime contributes to the reduction of the feeling of security, But the intensity of this effect depends on the type of crime, where violent or symbolically impactful crimes generate more fear, Like media and social narratives, considering that the way crimes are communicated shaping the perception of security, as well as the local context, Because inequality, the effectiveness of institutions and collective experiences are decisive, verifying that the relationship between crime and feeling of (in)safety is mediated by the way the risk is lived, the numbers of crime must be interpreted and communicated by typology of crime and not just through absolute numbers.
Note: The text constitutes the exclusive and unique opinion of its author, which only binds to this and do not reflect the opinion or position of the institution where it provides services.
