Eunice / tjc09_violence

“Rates of criminal violence are higher in mobile and heterogeneous societies.” The author of passage 1 believes that a country consisting of many different types of people is more prone to criminal violence than a country that consists of a single race. He attributes this to the assumption that people of the same race will get along better because of the deeper understanding that they have towards their own racial group. With racial tolerance, people may be unlikely to end up in disputes or fights, which may therefore reduce criminal violence. However, I disagree that criminal violence rates are necessarily higher in heterogeneous countries. In Singapore, the assumption that criminal violence rates are higher in mobile and heterogeneous societies does not hold. Singapore is a multi-racial country and people of many different races stay together in this small land area. Although so, Singapore has low crime rates and minimal criminal violence rates. This shows that it is possible for people of different races to come across one another without resulting in any conflicts. The peace in Singapore can be attributed to the fact that all races are treated equally. No single race is treated better or seen to be of higher class and this is backed by the law in Singapore. Therefore, the view that rates of criminal violence are higher in mobile and heterogeneous societies is not applicable to Singapore’s society.
“Traditional parental control has disappeared and many Muslim families are headed by a single parent.” The author of Passage 2 believes that single parenthood and the lack of traditional parental control can lead to an increase in criminal violence. This is because there is little guidance that the children receive and hence, it might lead to them committing crimes. However, this is not applicable to Singapore’s society. Divorce rates have increased from 4,888 in 1997 to 7,226 in 2007 but there hasn’t been any significant increase in criminal violence rates. This shows that children brought up by a single parent are not necessarily more likely to commit crimes. It can be attributed to the fact that Singapore has a boys’ home and girls’ home that helps in disciplining children that are out of hand. Parents who cannot control their children might choose to send them to the home where there are professionals to control and teach them. There also isn’t any significant change in traditional parental control in Singapore. Therefore, the view that the lack of traditional parental control and being brought up by a single parent will lead to a higher rate of criminal violence is not applicable to Singapore’s society.