Social Media Perpetuating Fear In Spite of Decrease in Crime Rate?

Kareem Musa

One of the topics of discussions at today’s crime prevention and control forum had to do with the effects of social media on the psyche of Belizeans, as it pertains to violent crimes. According to Minister Musa, statistics show that violent crimes are down, however, the prominence of social media is causing people to live in greater fear.

Kareem Musa, Minister of Home Affairs

“What you will notice is a lot of the crimes now, whether it is caught on CCTV camera, whether it is caught on your phone it is uploaded on World Wide Web. And so we see it on a daily basis. And so many people who are viewing this actually position themselves in the shoes of the victims in these situations and that certainly have a psychological not only the individuals viewing it but the overall population. So while it is that the numbers are down I think we can see the effects that social media is having in terms of how it is you feel.”