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RIYADH: Various sectors have expressed alarm over the increasing number of crime incidents in the Kingdom over the years, calling to mind that in the 1980s, Saudi Arabia was practically crime free.
Crimes were committed by jobless youths, and the rate grew from 320 percent from 1990 to 1996, official records show. In 2013, crime incidents in the Kingdom crossed 22,113, up 102 percent from 2012.
But these sectors have not expressed surprise about the increase in crime incidents, saying that this phenomenon was bound to happen due to the bad influences brought about by modern times.
Yusuf Al-Rumaih, expert in criminology and fighting terrorism, said, “One reason is the advent of social media which has opened major security gaps in the community.” He said that people commit criminal acts through social media such as fraud, theft, bribery, sex, sale of arms, and other crimes.
“Social media also carries news on crime incidents and these have inevitably fascinated people with criminal tendencies,” he said.
He also noted that the population of the youths is also increasing, and it comprises 60 percent of the community, adding that most crime incidents “are committed by young people aged 17 to 23 years, a stage representing the age of adolescence and early manhood.” “During this period, not a few young people are involved in smuggling, the tendency to challenge authorities, and drugs,” he said.
Records show that conviction for drug possession rose from 4,279 in 1986 to 17,199 in 2001, and the reasons for these included the population boom, rapid social change, and massive unemployment.
Dr. Mohsin Sheikh Al-Hassan, well-known Islamic scholar and author, added that what saddens him is the fact that many parents don’t know what’s happening to their children.
“If their children go to their rooms and lock themselves inside, they don’t know what’s happening to them. They could be chatting through the social media with people with bad intentions,” he said.
He added that these children could be giving information that exposes the family to danger or they could be molested by people they’re chatting with through the Internet.
“The problem with social media is we call it new media. But I call it free media — no rules, no regulations, no control, and a study showed that at least half of the 27 million Saudi population have access to social media,” he said.
He added that a US report said children as young as seven, both boys and girls, have been molested through social media.
“The authorities have made moves to protect children who are molested. But what about those who commit the crime?” he said.
He added that “if we let these people go on with their deviant ways, they’ll continue committing the same crime against other unwittingly vulnerable children.” Another reason for the increase in crimes is the fact that there are about 4 million migrant women in various cities of the Kingdom and that they commit different crimes such as theft, drug possession, assault, fraud, among other criminal acts.
“It could be noted that many of these migrant women are among those beggars with outstretched hands on the streets or in malls and supermarkets asking for money from pedestrians or motorists,” he said.
However, the crime rate in the Kingdom is often described as low by foreign countries and other sources. Statistics show that in the Crime Index for 2016 by NUMBEO, the Kingdom ranked 106.
NUMBEO is the world’s largest data base of user contributed data about cities and countries worldwide. It provides current and timely information on world living conditions, including cost of living, housing, health care, traffic, crime, and pollution.
It indicated that the Kingdom’s crime index was 25.52, while its safety index was 74.48.
© Arab News 2016
