A number of bizarre crimes have left many shaking their heads and wondering what is happening to law and order.
Following a bizarre incident earlier this month in which a scooter-rider in Sinjhuang (新莊), Taipei County, was killed by a stray bullet, this week a scooter-rider in Tainan felt blood on his chin and pain in his face and reported to hospital, whereupon doctors extracted a 4mm bullet from his jaw.
Last week, a 31-year-old man who was enjoying a conversation with his girlfriend in Hsinchu City was allegedly beaten to death for no reason by four minors and a young adult.
Then, on Tuesday night, Taipei City Councilor Yen Sheng-kuan (顏聖冠) and Yang Hui-ju (楊蕙如), a Web site manager for former Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), were attacked by a woman outside the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store opposite Taipei Railway Station.
Yesterday morning a man fell into a coma after allegedly being beaten by two or three men at a park in Sinjhuang.
In response to these incidents, an Internet “campaign” by an individual who suggested that people purchase bulletproof vests received a surprising amount of interest in the press. Although the campaign is tongue in cheek and mainly serves to ridicule the efforts of police, it reflects increasing dissatisfaction with law enforcement agencies and their work in maintaining public safety.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Tuesday sang the praises of the police force and lauded its efforts to uphold law and order. Ma said that in the last year the overall crime rate had declined by 13 percent and violent crime by 17 percent, while the rate of solved cases had increased by 1.66 percent.
“To a certain extent,” Ma added, “the country’s crime situation in general has improved.”
Unquestionably a majority of police are hard-working and meet their difficult responsibilities in a professional and patient manner.
But it is no secret that police culture in its current guise tends to be conservative, with a chain of command that is closed, resistant to reform and that does not look kindly upon individual officers who hope to improve the overall professionalism of the force and to free their duties from political influences.
Political interference with the police manifests itself in various ways. With regard to crime statistics, that can amount to fiddling with the numbers to protect the reputations of local commanders and elected representatives, regardless of the political party in question.
When Ma spoke of the impressive results that the police have achieved, there is no doubt that the numbers reflected the reality to some degree.
Given the above incidents, however, the government has a lot of work to do to bridge the gap between these splendid numbers and the public’s impression of the reality and their experience with police.
That process could start with the police bureaucracy allowing officers to have a greater say in how to improve efficacy and ethics in their work — and communicating more with the public and the media about the reality of crime and law enforcement at the local level.
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