Dr Parmjeet Parmar: Retail crime victims can only do so much to keep themselves safe

Dairies have been common retail targets for thieves during the past few months, as have service stations and gem stores.

OPINION

Warning: The story contains footage and details which some viewers may find distressing.

This was the warning on a news website when you clicked on the recent article of a dairy worker’s finger and thumb being severed by an offender with a machete.

It is quite the privilege to get this warning and an opportunity to decide if we want to watch the horrific and violent experience this dairy worker went through.

Unfortunately for our retail sector, their concerns are not hypothetical and stem from their real-life experiences. Every day when going to work, they are hoping they aren’t the next victim on the news, left recovering in hospital or even dead.

The person or business targeted are always the most hurt by crime. For others it’s just an issue that they see or read on the news.

It is also of no surprise, that some seem to be seeing this recent trend of crime as solely an issue of concern for the Indian or immigrant community.

After the horrifying death of a dairy worker in Sandringham, the Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, along with some of her ministers had a closed-door meeting with a handful of people from the Indian community.

As per a letter circulated on behalf of the attendees from the Indian community, the Minister of Police Chris Hipkins and Minister of Justice Kiri Allan were present in the meeting too, but what was of interest was that the meeting was facilitated by the chief executive of the Ministry of Ethnic Communities.

To have the chief executive of the Ministry of Ethnic Communities as the facilitator very clearly added an ethnic layer to the real issue of law and order and having a handful of people from the Indian community in the meeting clearly was an attempt to make it an Indian community issue.

The Kiwi Indian community represents a significant portion of small retail owners and workers, notably in dairies and liquor stores. Therefore, it should be of no surprise that many of the recent victims have been of Indian descent. Additionally, many in all the protests have been of Indian descent.

Victims can only do so much to keep themselves safe. For example, the victim at the Hamilton dairy, who had his finger and thumb chopped off by an offender, did not have time to access his panic button or fog cannon.

Yes, the stories of ram raids, burglaries and robberies that we see on the news nearly day after day have people mostly of Indian descent as victims but what seems to have been missed from the recent narrative, is that it is not only dairies being targeted.

We have seen burglaries, robberies or ram raids at Louis Vuitton, Michael Hill Jeweller shops, service stations, Gun City in Christchurch and a military and hunting equipment store in Auckland.

All issues when drilled down can be linked to some demographics. Making this issue of attacks on retailers an Indian community issue, as attempted by the Government, was a great strategy to quickly quiet down criticism of the Government. But it does little to deal with the actual nub of issue.

Action needs to be taken to tackle the issue at the source: being the offenders.

Victims can only change so much of their lives before it feels like they’re being punished for being victims.

Accountability of the perpetrators is the key regardless of their age.

Offenders need to be taken out of society if necessary to protect small retailers and themselves. Anecdotally, we hear a small number of young people commit most crimes. They know they are “untouchable”. We need adequate facilities and trained staff to supervise these people if their parents or caregivers can’t manage them.

Using the narrow lens of making ram raids, robberies and burglaries at retail outlets an Indian community issue might be convenient for politicians with an eye on the next election, but it is plain wrong.

It is not just the Indian community’s issue or even an issue of insufficient safety measures in these outlets; it is in fact a much wider issue of deterioration of our law-and-order state into lawlessness.

- Dr Parmjeet Parmar is a former National Party MP and Families Commissioner.