Personal Safety 2006

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Personal Safety 2006

• Presented by
• Brisbane Central District
• Crime Prevention Unit

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Purpose

• We are trying to provide you with accurate and
  empowering personal safety information to
  encourage you to implement effective personal
  safety strategies which will increase your
  quality of life, rather than place limitations on
  you.

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Topics

• Personal Violence (Physical Sexual)
• Fear of Crime
• 10 Core Concepts of Personal Safety
• Safety Strategies-Leaving Work

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Opening Statement

• There are no all-purpose strategies to preserve
  your personal safety in all situations.
• As individuals we should recognise our own
  strengths and weaknesses as well as our
  environmental surroundings and perceived
  motivations of the attack/confrontation to
  determine actions to best preserve our safety.

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What is Personal Violence?

• Personal Violence is defined as any incident
  involving the occurrence, attempt or threat of
  either physical or sexual assault
• (ABS Personal Safety Survey 2005)

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Personal Violence

• In general, the following characteristics apply
  to
• offences against the person
• mostly male offenders (84)
• 48 all offenders are aged less than 25 yrs
• 46 of victims are female
• major risk factor are persons aged 15 - 29 yrs
• risk decreases with age
• most offenders are known to the victim
• home is most common location overall
• (QPS Statistical Review 1997-98)

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Physical Assault

• Prevalence
• 10 men and 4.7 women claim to have experienced
  physical violence in the last 12 months prior to
  the survey
• Victims
• Men aged between 18-24 years were most likely to
  be physically assaulted (43)
• Offenders
• 64 of physical assaults were by male
  perpetrators
• The most common location for physical assaults
  to occur for women was in the home irrespective
  of the sex of the perpetrator
• Men who were physically assaulted by a male
  perpetrator were more likely to have been
  assaulted at licensed premises (34) or in the
  open (35) however if the perpetrator was female
  then 77 of the physical assaults occurred in the
  home
• (ABS Personal Safety Australia 2005)

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Sexual Assault

• Prevalence
• 1.6 or 126 100 women and 0.6 or 46 700 men
  claim to have experienced sexual violence
• Victims
• 31 who experienced sexual assault were aged
  between 25-34 years of age
• Offenders
• Most likely perpetrator was a family member or
  friend (39 for women and 44 for men)
• HARASSMENT
• An estimated 27 of men and 56 of women
  reported being harassed at some stage of their
  life
• Approximately 1 in 10 men and 1 in 5 women will
  be stalked at some stage in their lifetime
• (ABS Personal Safety Australia 2005)

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Statistics

• Offences reported per 100,000 population
• Homicide 1
• Other Homicide 3
• Assault 486
• Sexual Assault 139
• Robbery 45
• (QPS Crime Statistics 2004-2005 Queensland
  population 3,635,121 in 2001)

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Why should we address the common trends of
personal violence?

• Fear for personal safety can restrict a persons
  social participation and diminish trust within
  the community.
• At the same time, an awareness of personal
  safety can encourage people to
• - take precautions like avoiding potentially
  dangerous places
• - identify the real risks
• - develop strategies to address those risks to
  minimise the likelihood of becoming a victim
• - put fear of crime into perspective

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Is there anything wrong with having a fear of
crime?
Positive Effect encourages the implementation of
preventative strategies for you and your
family Negative Effect fear of becoming a
victim and decreased feelings of safety may
restrict a persons participation in society
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Extent of Fear of Crime

• respondents see young people in particular as a
  source of threat in public places
• women are more fearful than men, both at home
  and walking alone at night, 95 of men and 83 of
  women feel safe in their own home after dark
• fear of crime is generally higher among the
  poor, less educated and ethnic minorities
• the unpredictable stranger was the focus for
  most respondent's fears, especially in public
  places and at night
• (ABS Personal Safety Australia 2005)

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Factors that contribute to fear of crime?

• Media Sensationalism
• bad news sells
• Minor Harassment
• workplace bullying
• Vulnerability
• no support networks
• Anticipation of Serious Consequences
• For both women and men, the seriousness of rape
  is often perceived as equal in consequence to
  murder. Subsequently their anticipation of the
  serious consequences of this type of crime is
  extremely high

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10 Core Concepts ofPersonal Safety

• 1. Right to safety 2. Keeping violence in
  perspective
• 3. Confidence 4. Commitment
• 5. Body language 6. Being aware of surroundings
• 7. Trusting Instincts 8. Assertiveness
• 9. Networks 10. Personal Safety Plan

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1. Right to Safety

• We all have the right to feel safe all of the
  time
• Implement safety strategies
• You are encouraged to be prepared and comitted to
  your personal safety
• It is also important to respect others right to
  safety

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2. Keep Violence in Perspective

• By educating ourselves about the source of our
  fears we can gain an understanding of the real
  risks involved and develop strategies to minimise
  those risks.
• Example
• fear of spiders
• (what can a small spider really do to you)

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3. Commitment

• Many people are more committed to the safety of
  their loved ones then they are to their own
  safety.
• Being committed to your safety is fundamental to
  maintaining it.

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4. Confidence

• reflected in body language, portraying our
  vulnerability/strength
• reflected in our ability to handle a threat to
  personal
• safety
• often reflected in our quality of life
• bluffing confidence is effective
• source of power - all successful people have
  faith in their own abilities

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5. Body Language

• Strong, confidence head up, shoulders back,
  looking people in the eye, walking purposefully,
  being casually aware of surroundings
• Weak, vulnerable head drooped, shoulders
  hunched, not looking people in the eye, walking
  unsurely, appearing paranoid

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6. Awareness of Surroundings

• Allows you to avoid potential threat/danger by
  taking action before it reaches you/ you reach it
• Minimises the possibility of someone attacking or
  assaulting you by surprise
• By casually being aware of surroundings you
  appear strong, confident and streetwise, thus
  reducing the likelihood of being targeted by an
  attacker

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7. Trusting Acting on Instincts

• Our bodies sense threat sooner than our conscious
  mind.
• By listening to our instincts we can take action
  to remove ourselves from the source of threat and
  dramatically reduce the risk of being targeted.
• By ignoring our instincts we can allow ourselves
  to be placed into a dangerous situation.
• Listen to the voice inside you, doubt means dont

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8. Assertiveness

• There are 3 types of communication
• Passive
• Aggressive
• Assertive

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• Passive Communication
• Not expressing your thoughts, feelings or desires
  by putting others needs ahead of your own
• Leads to frustration and indirect aggression
  (Backing Down)
• Aggressive Communication
• Not allowing others to communicate their
  thoughts, feelings, desires and needs
• Speaking without listening
• (Standing over)

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• Assertive Communication
• Requires expressing your thoughts, desires,
  feelings and needs in an appropriate way
• Allows both people to express their points of
  view objectively and strive to reach an agreeable
  solution
• Is optimal in most day to day situations however
  sometimes aggressive or passive communication my
  be required to maximize your safety
• Does not come naturally to all people

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9. Networks

• By talking to people we trust and gaining their
  support and advice we are better equipped to
  handle and solve our problems
• Networks can assist to increase our confidence
  and self esteem
• Often people most in need of assistance are
  isolated.

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10. Personal Safety Plan

• Consisting of practical preventative strategies
  as well as preparing you should your safety be
  threatened
• Chosen strategies should become habits, used on a
  daily basis
• Should not be a list of rules
• Visual imagery is an effective method of
  preparing ourselves to use chosen strategies.

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Safety Strategies- Leaving Work

• How do you carry bags and valuables
• Where do you talk to strangers
• ATMs, who is watching
• Public transport
• Are you being followed

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Safety Strategies- At Home

• House number should be easily seen, reflective
  numbers are useful
• Dont leave messages on doors and place funeral
  or wedding notices with addresses
• Leave lights on or TV or radio playing
• Consider a home safe not a jewellery box
• Vision, clear and uninterrupted view of the home
  makes it less likely to be broken into

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Actions

• Fighting back
• Escaping
• Screaming
• Negotiating with person
• Creating a diversion
• Whatever the person tells you
• Anything that will best preserve your safety

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CPU Resources available

• Crime Prevention Brochures
• Womens Infolink Resources
• Kids Parents Helpline Information
• Domestic Violence Resource Centre
• Mens Infoline
• Victims of Crime Association

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Personal Safety Presentation

• THANK YOU
• for your
• participation!