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The United States And Its Double Standard Definition Of World Trouble Spots By Terkura Aku, Esq
Washington’s Travel warning piece on Nigeria, the second in the year, issued recently by the US States Department, catalogued a number of sins that qualified Nigeria a spot on its list of top thirty world trouble spots. This must have elicited a mixture of reactions among Nigerians. While it might have aroused a feeling of indignation in some, others might have felt the country deserves it, yet others might feel indifferent.
Nigeria’s image in the international court of public opinion has a had roller coaster cruise, soaring high at some instances and nose-diving at others. Until the advent of the current administration, the country’s image appeared to be irredeemably nose-diving. The unfortunate fact is that at many times, Nigerians have always provided the motivation. For instance, the activities of the militants in Niger Delta must have tempted and blinded the US States Department to rank Nigeria among the world’s twenty-nine top trouble spots. The import of this cannot be understated and needs to be taken seriously.
However, what beats my imagination is the criteria used for the classification. Washington may have facts to support her claims; but these are incidences that happen in every city in the world. One of the issues raised by Washington’s travel warning is the occurrence of violent crimes in Abuja and Lagos, which Washington claims is an on-going phenomenon. The warning note also eulogised on things like poorly maintained taxis and the possibility of encountering fraudulent operators as some of the issues of grave concern to them. The Travel warning, obtained from the website of the State Department, painted the picture of a society where nothing is working, a society of cannibals, a society that is dysfunctional and totally to be avoided.
Though we are not excusing the embarrassing behaviour of some of our compatriots who exploit innocent people, including Nigerians, for their selfish gains, painting a picture, by Washington, to suggest it is a general attitude of Nigerians to be fraudulent is unacceptable and a deliberate mischief to discredit Nigerians, who have been known to be friendly, accommodating and very honest. Had Nigerians been otherwise, foreign businesses thriving in the country would not have been operating in the country. Fraudulent people exist everywhere in the world and are likely to be encountered by people especially if they’re involved in businesses that offer direct services to customers, like running taxis.
Violent crimes occur everywhere in the world. The standard definition of violent crimes operational in most countries’ law enforcement charters refer to homicide, rape, robbery, as well as simple and aggravated assault, whether or not it results in injury. The occurrences of these offences, synonymous with every human society, are not exclusive to Nigeria. Major cities around the world suffer these social misdemeanours. If violent crimes qualify countries to be regarded as trouble spots, then a look at the crime statistics of the following states in the US leaves one wondering why Nigeria’s case should be different.
Data sources from the 2003 FBI Report of Offences known to law enforcement quoted from www.cityrating.com’s crime statistics showed that in Philadelphia, 20,620 cases of violent crimes and 62,454 cases of property crimes were reported. 9.617 were robberies, 1004 forcible rape and 9,651 aggravated assaults. The murder rate in Philadelphia was 3.4 times the national average.
In New Orleans, the crime report, official figures were 2,071 cases of robber, 2,038 cases of aggravated assault and 274, cases of murder. In all, there were 4,596 cases of violent crime and 24,477 cases of property crime. The murder rate in New Orleans was 7.54 times the national average.
Chicago did not post a better report either. A total of 37,684 cases of violent crimes and 144, 622 cases of property crimes were reported. Burglary and aggravated assault accounted for 25,064 and 19,784 cases respectively. The murder rate per capita was 2.7 times the national average while all violent crimes rate was 2.18 times the national average.
The 2001 Interpol crime statistics, posted on the internet, put the official figures for murder in the US at 4,161 per 100,000. The report also considered murders per 100,000 committed in four other countries and reported that Germany and France had 7,736 and 6,941 cases respectively. According to the report, at least one murder was committed every two days in Germany.
Sexual assault is another form of violent crime that is rampant in the United States. An independent report from Crisis Connect revealed that the United States has the world’s highest rape rate – 13 times higher than England and more than 20 times higher than Japan. The report, which found that 61.7% of rapes are never reported to law enforcement, estimated that every 45 seconds, someone in the US is sexually assaulted.
The National Crime Victimisation Survey revealed that from 1994-95 only 251,560 cases of rape and sexual assaults were reported to law enforcement officials, less than one in every three. Sexual assault is not just about lust and desire, but it’s a violent crime of power, control and dominance, traits associated with the American thinking. However, this would not be enough reason for any government to label the United States a world trouble spot.
An article on www.planetpapers.com revealed that in the US, there are, on average, more than one gun per household, while another article estimated that over 200 million adults in the United States own at least a gun. It is only in the developed world that guns are on open sale. The article further revealed that in 1996, 2 people in New Zealand, 15 in Japan, 30 in Britain, 106 in Canada, 211 in Germany and 9,390 in the USA were murdered with handguns.
Out of about 500,000 incidents of violent crime, ranging from assault to murder involving firearms every year in the US, an average of 35,000 result in deaths, including suicide and accidents. ‘Compared with other countries, the statistics are alarming’ the report concludes. Similarly, in 1999, O’Donnell found that one year’s misuse of guns in the US claimed as many lives as the Korean War. Eighteen months’ death toll from guns equalled the number of deaths in Vietnam and 9 years of deaths due to misuse of firearms equalled the entire death toll for World War II.
These statistics paint a frightening picture of unsafe cities, which is enough to scare anyone willing to visit the United States. This would have equally prompted the Nigerian government to issue a warning to her citizens intending to or travelling to the US, but the Nigerian government, and indeed many understanding governments, conscious of the effects such an action would have on her relationship with the United States, rather chose to show understanding and support, aware that these are ills common to mankind.
The statistics have been reeled out to show one thing alone: that violent crime is an ongoing problem, not only in Abuja and Lagos, but in every major city, including those in the United States of America.
Curiously though, countries known for high crime rates like Scotland, England and Germany were missing on the list.
On September 19, 2005, Time Online published that a UN report has labelled Scotland the most violent country in the developed world. According to the report, about 2,000 Scots were attacked every week and that since January (of the same year assume), there had been 13 murders, 145 attempted murders and over1,100 cases of serious assaults involving knives. The study also reported that violent crime had doubled in Scotland over the past twenty years and are now comparable with cities such as Rio De Janeiro, Johannesburg and Tbilisi.
The same UN report showed that people are more likely to be mugged, burgled or assaulted in England and Wales than in America, Germany, Russia, South Africa or any other part of the World’s largest 20 nations. ; ‘Only the Dominican Republic, New Zealand and Finland have higher crime rates than England and Wales,’ the report concluded. England and Wales are the second worst places in the world for assault, and seventh for burglaries. 851 assault and 1,579 burglaries occur out of every 100,000 population.
The British crime Survey (BCS), in its 2004-05 Report, revealed that the total reported crimes in England and Wales was 1.85 million, with nearly 24% of the country’s population being victim of some type of crime. Violent crime accounted for 2.4 million cases, out of which 401,000 were cases of domestic violence.
We are not suggesting to the States Department to include these countries on the list. We are simply trying to establish that if violent crimes are yardstick for labelling countries trouble spots, then no country qualifies to be off the list. But we can understand the American sentiments in this case.
Terkura Aku, Esq 32 Busa Buji Street, Jos
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