KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) believes that efforts to reduce crime and tackle issues concerning social illness should start at home.
Its senior vice-chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said the public, especially parents, had an important role to play in tackling crime.
He said it was imperative that parents nurtured noble values in children to prevent crime and social illnesses in the future.
“It is the fundamental right of every Malaysian to be free from any fear of crime.
“In order to achieve such aspiration, we need to go back to basics, which is to inculcate good values in our children with the hope that they can grow up into a responsible human beings.
“Despite all the legislations that are in place, it is equally important for parents to set a good example for children,” he said at the fifth Women’s Street Crime Awareness Campaign and Iron Lady Awards 2019 event, here, today.
It was organised by the Road Safety Marshal Club (RSMC) and Great Eastern Mall.
The RSMC was formed in 2008 to promote safety awareness among road users.
Although the crime rate was on a declining trend, Lee said fear of crime still persisted in the community.
“We must address such perception issues. This can be done by providing more manpower and additional allocation for the police,” he said, adding that NGOs and society at large have to tackle negative perception of the police force.
It was reported that the overall crime index from Jan until June this year has dropped by 7.1 per cent or 3,127 cases to 41,173 cases.
The overall crime index during the same period last year was 44,300 cases.
The number of violent and property crimes for the first six months of this year also fell by 7.3 per cent to 8,075 cases and seven per cent to 33,098 cases respectively, compared with the same period last year.
Lee said greater effort must be made to promote awareness among women of the importance of being vigilant of their surroundings.