Germans’ Fears Don’t Match the Crime Statistics
Lawlessness is declining, but that hasn’t brought a better sense of security.
Kinder and gentler.
Photographer: Mueller-Stauffenberg/ullstein bild via Getty Images
The German crime statistics for 2017 are out, and they show that the country hasn’t been this safe in more than two decades. And yet a large minority of Germans feel less secure than five years ago. This paradox has more to do with psychology than with statistics.
Since the refugee crisis in 2015, the annual data have been hotly debated. The figures for 2017 were no exception, even though Interior Minister Horst Seehofer had good news: Not only did the total number of crimes slide almost 10 percent, to the lowest level since 1992, but violent crime declined by 2.4 percent. Petty crimes were also lower, with an 11.8 percent decline in theft.