THE “RESILIENCE” of the victim needed to be recognised as a key to overcoming the trauma of crime, and victims should not be pressurised into feeling they needed to forgive, a leading Dutch criminologist told a conference in Tralee at the weekend.
The conference also heard how attitudes towards business crime needed to be “radically reassessed” – rising number of break-ins in the recession had devastating effects on small shops and offices and local areas.
Dr Jan Van Dijk, a professor and a former president of the world society of victimology told the Federation for Victim Assistance annual conference, that resilience, or “the bounce-back factor”, was for too long overlooked. “In the old days we were far too involved in looking after trauma. We should help to empower people.”
People had a natural resilience and allied with this “post-traumatic altruism”, which may be cultural, victims wanted to reach out to help other victims, Dr Van Dijk said. This aspect had not been harnessed enough.
He also said forgiveness was “wonderful”, but it should not be obligatory. Victims of crime often felt pressurised into needing to forgive, but they also needed to be allowed to express their anger, and their feelings about what had been done.
“Forgiveness is an ideal. But it can put a burden on the victim. It’s wonderful if you can do it, but it should not be an obligation,” he said. He also warned against support organisations becoming overly professional and too bureaucratic – the role of the community and the volunteer in supporting victims was vital, he said.
Outlining the results of a survey by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (Isme), which has 8,500 members, conducted in July, its chief executive Mark Fielding said the recession was leading to an increase in crime against businesses.
The overall cost of crime now was €1.48 billion, up from €1.43 billion the previous year.
Most respondents had experienced an increase in break-ins and theft over the last 12 months, with the retail sector suffering most. Theft from staff was also up and crime was now costing the average business €7,500. Up to €4,000 was being spent on security. A small business would have to turn over €100,000 to make up the cost of burglaries and disruption and this cost was being passed on to the consumer.
Just over one-third (38 per cent) of small and medium businesses had insurance, the survey found. “This idea that crime against business is a victimless crime does not stand up. It has a devastating impact on businesses and on areas also,” Mr Fielding said.
At the moment statistics on burglary of private houses and shops were all lumped in together. Isme was calling for Garda figures on business crime to be recorded separately.
“A business is twice as likely to be a victim of crime as a private house,” he said.
A radical reassessment of crime against business was needed, he added. There was a perception in the business sector that judges handed down lighter sentences for crime against businesses and the survey found the overwhelming majority – some 88 per cent – of small businesses felt courts were “ineffective” in dealing with crime against business.
Victims also spoke. Éamon Horan (75), a retired sports writer with the Kerryman newspaper, spoke of an unprovoked attack on him in July when he was jumped upon from behind, brought to the ground and pummelled by three youths. The attack left him with a broken jaw and nose.
Maireád Fernane, national chairwoman of the Federation for Victim Assistance, urged victims of crime who hadn’t sought help to contact the organisation.