60 per cent of Chinese in New Zealand feel unsafe, survey finds
Results cast shadow on small but prosperous Pacific nation’s reputation as one of the safest places to live
Sixty per cent of Chinese living in New Zealand feel unsafe, according to an online survey released on Friday.
The survey result runs counter to the common perception that New Zealand is one of the safest places in the world, although the researcher who conducted the poll pointed out the results only reflected people’s perceptions, not the true crime situation in the nation.
But it attracted the attention of Xinhua, which reported on the survey, and of New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, who reportedly sent a letter to the Chinese community promising more resources for policing.
Andrew Zhu, a political pollster at the University of Auckland, conducted the survey this week on WeChat, the popular Chinese instant-messaging service, which attracted nearly 12,000 responses from Chinese living in New Zealand who came from the mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia.
Some 62 per cent of the respondents were dissatisfied with public safety in the small Pacific nation, and 90 per cent were not satisfied with penalties for crime or policing.