Is poverty the cause.
One of the greatest problems facing our modern society is crime. High levels of crime in a country rob people of peace and tranquility while raising concerns for safety and security. This can cause psychological harm even to those who are never actually victimised. It deprives victims of their property or even their lives. Although crime is often committed by those who are impoverished, all those who are poor do not commit crimes.
If society cannot cater to basic needs such as housing, education, healthcare and employment, many will turn to crime to survive. However, if given the opportunity, many of these people would become productive citizens in the labour force. Today’s modern society is unforgiving and all too often the means to do so are just not there.
“Very often illegal ways are needed to survive”
Contacted by News on Sunday, Pavi Ramhota, a sociologist and lecturer at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute, gave us his insight into the matter. “Poverty’s effects on crime can be explained through a variety of factors. For instance, poverty can lead to high levels of stress that in turn may lead individuals to commit theft, or other crimes. Most people resort to crime only if they determine that potential benefits outweigh the consequences of committing that crime. However, poverty can often lead a person to commit a crime simply to live somehow.
Often illegal ways are needed in order to survive. Of course, there are some people who commit crimes for the sake of crime. Usually, this has something to do with abusive childhood or simply greed or some other stronger emotion. Nevertheless, there are other crimes that are not caused by poverty, like murder for example. Even wealthy people have been known to murder out of vengeance,” said Pavi Ramhota.