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Voters reject Rann crime boast
PAUL STARICK, MATT WILLIAMS
February 06, 2007 01:15am
Article from: The Advertiser
THE Rann Government has failed to deliver on its pledge to be tough on law and order and has not made the state safer, according to a survey of Advertiser readers.
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More than two-thirds of the 3500 respondents to the 2007 State of Justice survey believe SA is less safe than it was five years ago, or that it has not become any safer.
A similar number believe the State Government has breached its core promise to be "tough on law and order", while almost 40 per cent believe efforts to combat bikie gangs have been ineffective. But although the survey result is bad for a government that has consistently boasted of its law and order credentials, it has provided little comfort for the Opposition, respondents believing the Liberals would do no better.
Only 11 per cent say the Opposition would be tougher on law and order.
But respondents overwhelmingly support the Government's move to combat youth crime gangs by trying teenage repeat offenders as adults.
More than 90 per cent say juvenile offenders should be tried as adults for arson, home invasions, mugging, sexual assault, rape, attempted murder and murder.
Longer sentences for gang members and the public naming of juvenile offenders convicted of serious crimes has received strong support.
The 45-question survey was published in The Advertiser on January 13 and received 3552 responses, of which 2000 were randomly selected and analysed. Attorney-General Michael Atkinson has defended the Government's record on law and order, saying Labor was giving the justice system "new authority to punish and thereby deter violent crime and the anti-social behaviour common to some neighbourhoods".
"We are not complacent. We will continue to respond to what the people of South Australia expect from their government on criminal justice, much more than the Liberals, Democrats or Greens, who disdain public opinion on crime," he said. "We will continue to fund a record number of police, new prisons at Mobilong and increased funding for our courts and prosecutors."
But Opposition Leader Iain Evans said the Advertiser survey again showed the Government was "long on rhetoric and short on effective action when it comes to law and order issues".
"Again, the public has seen through the Rann Government's stream of PR announcements and recognises it for what it is, talk," he said. He said the Government's "PR spin" had eroded public faith in the justice system.
The survey respondents' critical perception of the Government's handling of law and order reflects the results of last year's inaugural State of Justice Survey.
The latest survey also found most people believe there are too many suppression orders issued by South Australian courts.
Almost 70 per cent of respondents said these suppression orders "seriously inhibit the public's right to know about cases".
A near majority of respondents had not been a victim of crime in the past year.
Of those who had been victims, more than a quarter said they had been involved in a road rage incident. About 13 per cent said their car, bicycle or vehicle had been vandalised, while almost 10 per cent had been victims of car break-ins.
People generally felt safe at home or in public places during the day, but felt quite unsafe at night when using ATMs, at public transport stops, in Rundle Mall and city squares or while using the Adelaide parklands.
Commissioner for Victims' Rights coordinator Michael O'Connell said victims believed repeat offenders should be "dealt with more harshly" by the courts.
Advertiser's new rant
Advertiser's new rant
Here's today headline front page article in the advertiser. It's a survey conducted on a sample of 3552 advertiser readers and only 2000 randomly selected. It's headline 'voters reject Rann crime boast' makes it sound like the whole electorate's covered by this result. I keep wondering why we have such a toilet trash 'newspaper'. Surely the floods in Jakarta or something else deserves more attention than this useless info.
I was deeply embarrassed when I read the Advertiser today. It is sad that the Advertiser which is such a sensationalist, reactionary journal is the only major newspaper in Adelaide.
And I was further shocked to read the ignorant responses posted by members of the public. Do people think that the Premier will wave some kind of magical wand and all the bad people will end up in jail, and all crime will stop?
And I was further shocked to read the ignorant responses posted by members of the public. Do people think that the Premier will wave some kind of magical wand and all the bad people will end up in jail, and all crime will stop?
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