Crime Stoppers Day focus to target culturally diverse community groups

Posted on 20/05/2018

As part of its ongoing efforts to encourage people to come forward with information about criminals and their illegal activities, a number of Crime Stoppers programs from across Australia will focus on engaging culturally and linguistically diverse communities for Crime Stoppers Day on 21 May.

Crime Stoppers South Australia Chair, Ms Sharon Hanlon said the successful crime-solving program had long advocated that crime operates without borders and its expanded national focus on non-English speaking communities reminds people that crime occurs across all different cultural backgrounds.

“We understand that some people might come from countries that are war-torn or with an embedded distrust of police and authority, so it is important to reassure them that Crime Stoppers is an independent program that acts as a trusted link between the community and police if they have information about criminals and illegal activities,” Ms Hanlon said.

“We are seeing people from all walks of life falling victim to large, complex crimes in areas such as fraud, drug making and dealing, human trafficking, child exploitation, and environmental crime so our local focus for Crime Stoppers Day is to promote awareness of the program to all South Australians, regardless of their cultural background,” she said.

“There can be no argument that crime is a crime in any language, and if someone has any information that can help the authorities, then we have well-trained call-takers on standby to help, and we can arrange translation services if needed.”

The 2016 Census shows that nearly half (49%) of Australians had either been born overseas (first generation Australian) or have one or both parents born overseas (second generation Australian).  While England and New Zealand were still the next most common countries of birth after Australia, the proportion of people born in China and India has increased since 2011 (from 6.0% to 8.3%, and 5.6%t to 7.4% respectively).

“Of the more than 6.1m Australians who were born overseas, nearly one in five arrived since the start of 2012, which shows that our community is evolving at a fast rate, and it is critical that Crime Stoppers adapts and keeps pace, which is why we are particularly pleased with the focus of this year’s campaign,” Ms Hanlon said.

“We know that there are over 300 separately identified languages spoken in Australian homes, with more than one-fifth of Australians speaking a language other than English at home – including Mandarin, Arabic, Cantonese, and Vietnamese,” he said.

“Our message is clear – regardless of what your background may be, everyone can play a part in making a safer and more secure South Australia by stepping up, contacting Crime Stoppers and sharing any information or suspicion they have about illegal activities by calling our toll-free hotline on 1800 333 000 or going to www.crimestopperssa.com.au.”

A linguistically diverse poster and a range of highly-visible digital assets have been developed as part of the Crime Stoppers Day activities.

If you have any information about criminals or criminal activity, then call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, report online at www.crimestopperssa.com.au  or use the Report Suspicious Behaviour app. People can remain anonymous and rewards are available.

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