Insurance Stats Prove Crime Rate In South Africa Is Rising |
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7 November - One month ago Charles Nqakula, South Africa's venerable Minister of Safety and Security, proclaimed that levels of crime were decreasing, and that this was in fact a steady decline in the crime rate that dated back to 1994. But insurance records in South Africa, which are independently kept tell a very different story. Various corporate executives have responded to the Minister's jolly announcement with their own statistics kept for insurance purposes, and they reveal that crime in South Africa is at epidemic proportions and a very real threat to the survival of this country. According to Massmart's CEO for instance, crime in South Africa is up 20% this year. The JD Group reported that preventitive measures taken by the company to stop crime coupled with losses sustained as a result of crime cost more than R100 million for the financial year up to the end of August 2006. The JD Group alone was victimised by no fewer than forty-three armed robberies in a one year period. The official crime statistics, which most sentient South Africans acknowledge to be watered-down (either deliberately due to corruption, or because many serious crimes such as rape go unreported here), are still horrendous. To argue that they are decreasing is a statistical facade. Look at the figures for the twelve-month period from March 2005 to March 2006: - 18,545 murders, down 1.3% according to the Minister, so perhaps we should throw a parade in celebration. The only problem is the floats will be stolen, the crowd will be held at gunpoint and robbed, and there'll be a few isolated incidents of rape on the way home. - 55,000 rapes, that obviously doesn't include all the acts of rape in South Africa, as there are many cases where women stay over at the homes of powerful men, say for example a government minister, and then "ask for it". - 120,000 robberies with aggravating circumstances, where one could define "aggravating" as being shot but not killed while trying to hand over your cellphone and keys to someone who clearly needs them more than you do. The bottom line is that there has surely never been a better time in South Africa to take out plenty of short-term insurance on your car and your personal possessions. As long as Charles is in charge of your safety and security some long-term insurance in the form of a decent life insurance policy is also highly recommended. Related Insurance Articles: * South African Car And Home Sales Start To Slow Down * Liberty Life To Buy Out STANLIB * Blue Financial Services Maiden Earnings Up 225% * Lloyds Investors Lose Insurance Regulation Lawsuit * Old Mutual Wins Judgment In Life Insurance Court Case * UK Insurance News - Legal And General Sales Are Up * Financial Advice And A Little Insurance For Newlyweds * Can OUTsurance Cover Us Against Jacob Zuma 
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| 3/14/2010 7:06:24 AM | |||||||||||||||||||||
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