Aesthetically safe

By Desmond Ho 0 comments
10 August 2012 | last updated at 10:55PM

PLAY IT SAFE: Try a few tips with plants to make your home and neighbourhood safer

Instant news: The crime rate and security issues were hotly debated in recent weeks with newspaper headlines screaming one crime after another being committed. I would not venture to guess if there is an actual increase in crime rate as it is difficult to ascertain the figures but I believe two reasons could have made the crime rate seem higher than before.

The first could be that the percentage of crime remains the same but the population growth in urban areas simply led to a rise in absolute numbers, hence the perception of increased crime rates. The advancements in how we get our news might also be one of the key reasons as news from all over the country reaches us in an instant now. Thanks to citizen reporting, many crimes that would previously go unreported are being thrown to the forefront of our consciousness.

The first reason is an unfortunate statistical effect but could definitely be improved over time. The second reason is a welcome trend as people become more aware of more things that go on in our country. Regardless of the actual crime trend, it pays to be vigilant and to protect ourselves from harm as much as possible.

What boundaries? Writing about this also reminds me of my days growing up in my kampong. I am sure many of my peers would remember the days when we did not have any borders between neighbours and one house compound flows freely into another. Perimeter markers such as scrubs were used mostly to mark the boundaries between the field and the houses.

I also remember how my grandfather would throw open the doors every morning when he wakes up and the door will remain open throughout the day and would only be closed when we go to bed at night.

In fact the only thing we were concerned about was to keep out the cats and dogs that would sometimes come into the house at night. However, even the animals learned after awhile of the boundaries and would not trespass into our properties. Life was peaceful and harmonious.

This did not change much even when many of us first moved into the cities. We had low fencing around our houses that were barely 1.5 meters high and hardly served as a security feature. What it allowed though was an easy way for us to talk to our neighbours and foster community spirit.

Many people would plant some small plants around the perimeter to beautify the compound without blocking out the line of sight, thus allowing neighbours to keep an eye on each other‘s properties when one is not at home.

“Samurai” of our properties: However, the pace of life has picked up massively over the years and many in newer neighbourhoods do not even know the names of their neighbours. The most one would get out of each other is maybe a wave or a smile when running into each other in the morning.

In a time when you do not know your neighbours and your neighbours do not know you, we have to fend for ourselves and protect our own properties.

We have become the samurai of our own properties and must fend for ourselves. I could probably comment much more on the ills of this trend, but this is sadly something that we need time to evolve for the better.

This is also why gated and guarded communities are getting more popular.

However, the gated and guarded format is not always open to everyone, particularly in some older residential districts. Take the older parts of Petaling Jaya for example, many of the roads in the residential areas are public roads and serve as access roads to other parts of town. It is very tricky and often illegal to fence up the roads to create a closed community.

What then can owners do to safeguard their properties?:The answers are easy enough. Take a look around the next time you are in a housing area; some people use very high fencing, others embed glass on their perimeter walls, while some use barbed wire to fence up their back lane. I can understand the extremes people do to protect their home as it is the place where we need to feel safe and be able to let our guard down a little.

But like everything else, overdoing it is never healthy and soon one will feel like he or she is living in a prison. Like nature, everything has to be balanced; we need to incorporate security features without compromising on aesthetics.

Striking a balance is actually an art and here are some ideas you might employ in your homes.

Remember that many crimes are opportunistic in nature and criminals tend to look for the easiest possible target.

We cannot deny one their luxurious homes as they have worked hard to earn it, but it would help to tone down a little of the opulence and to hide some of the more valuable stuff from prying eyes. We do not want to create the opportunities to attract them and although we cannot prevent it totally, we can surely discourage them against coming in.

Take a look from outside your house.

Does your house look like it is easy to enter? Does your house look like there are many valuable things to steal from? Do you see that gold statue from outside your house? In order to cut out these views, we need some plants to screen parts of the house. Besides, houses in this layout typically overlook other houses and planting screening plants can increase privacy.

Bamboos are a good start as they grow closely together and provide a very calming atmosphere to the garden.

Flowering plants are also great additions as they not only provide screening, but add colours when they bloom. However, do make sure that the tree in your compound does not have protruding branches that would allow intruders to climb in easily.

We can also plant thorny plants to provide additional deterrent for intruders from scaling the perimeter wall.

In addition, a feng shui master would agree that thorny plants around the perimeter can ward off negative energy, thus providing an additional bonus.

Other visible security features such as CCTV (even if it’s a dummy) can provide further deterrents to burglars.

Holistic challenge: Having said all that, I am a strong believer of holistic approach to solving problems and believe that a change in attitude is the best means of protection. Imagine this: we spend most of our time indoors and are hardly seen outside the house. This gives the idea that the house is often empty and an easy target for burglars.

Much activities outside the house will also discourage burglars from scouting the neighbourhood looking for their target.

Imagine a neighbourhood with many people often outside the house getting some outdoor living and meddling with the bonsai. This neighbourhood would be full of life and discourage burglars from even bothering to come into the area as they know that their every movement will be seen by someone. This is a lesson taught by nature as burglars are a lot like termites.

Termites only attack rooms where there is no movement and hence an occupied room seldom falls prey to these pests.

Finally, with the neighbours frequently outside their house, we can expect more mingling and interaction, and a definite improvement in community spirit. Other than your immediate family, your neighbours are the ones you spend the most time with whenever you are at home and it is crucial to form good relationships with them. Spend more time outside and bring back the community spirit of yesteryears and you will be pleasantly surprised at how much safer everyone in the neighbourhood would feel.

Some residents find gated and guarded areas stifling and unfriendly

theSTAR
Tuesday April 24, 2012

DESPITE a recent announcement of a drop in crime rate in Malaysia, residents of Section 6 in Kota Damansara do not feel safe despite living in a gated and guarded area.

While some openly welcome the need for extra safety measures, others feel the gated community is hampering their movement and more importantly, depriving them of a friendly neighbourhood.

Section 6 in Kota Damansara is a large area with over 800 terrace and bungalow houses.

Some sections there have had the gated and guarded scheme for a number of years.

Resident Al Padzul Abu Hassan, 47, believes residents have other choices to safeguard their homes instead of gates and security.

“It feels like an army camp. What happened to good old neighbourhood watches? Neighbours can help look out for each other’s homes. My neighbour and I do it all the time,” he said.

His neighbour Kok Choon Yin, 49, and he have always been looking after each other’s property when one of them is away.

“Locking each other’s gate (if the other forgets to close or lock), leaving the lights on during the balik kampung exodus and helping each other in times of need, are just some of the routines we practice. It has brought us closer,” added Kok.

According to them, they had tried implementing a Rukun Tetangga walkabout but after a few times stopped upon seeing the lack of commitment.

Some of the residents were frustrated when their neighbours did not participate.

Another neighbour, a former police officer, who wished to be known as Gan, said the job of ensuring public safety lies with the police and not the residents.

He said the police force had doubled but it was not enough to deter crime.

According to Al Padzul, they have seen police cars patrolling the neighbourhood every two hours but they believe the stations are understaffed. However, they claimed that the Kota Damansara police officers had been really helpful and responded quickly to distress calls.

Gan however, feels some officers can do more for the community.

“The officers should get down from the vehicle, get to know the residents, check if the cars and doors are locked. We used to do these things as it is part of looking after the people,” said Gan.

Al Padzul also thinks the police can tap into other resources like getting National Service trainees to do a three-month practical by policing neighbourhoods.

“This short practical stint can be included in their syllabus,” he said.

He believes the trainees can put their training to good use and it will save the Government a lot of money.

However, there are also residents who support the scheme because of the increase in robberies and snatch thefts.

Surau Al Falah chairman Che Mohammad Che Idris said snatch thefts are a daily occurrence near the surau and some even steal the money from the donation box placed inside.

“We have placed drums to block motorcycles from coming in. Although it does not deter them totally, we have seen a drop in the number of cases,” he added.

Aziz Mat Aris said the crime rate in his area had dropped significantly.

“I now get a good night’s sleep because I know it is safe.”

He added that the guards were really strict when dealing with motorcyclists and it had made them feel safe.

“It is not like the army security but it deters outsiders from coming in and it is not expensive since there are many residents,” he added.

His fellow resident Fathurrahman Abd Hamid who lives in Jalan 6/1 said the gated and guarded scheme depends on individul opinion.

Fathurrahman said the neighbourhood watch would only work for the first few months before everyone reverts back to their old ways.

He said it did not matter how many police officers were employed as they could not be everywhere at the same time.

“We have to care for our own area as well. There are definitely pros and cons to the gated and guarded scheme. We have to take many things into consideration,” he added.

When contacted, Petaling Jaya OCPD Asst Comm Arjunaidi Mohamed said according to their statistics, the crime rate in Kota Damansara has dropped.

He said if the residents felt the the crime rate had gone up, they should report this to the police.

When asked about the number of police officers in the Kota Damansara police station, he said: “We are planning to increase the number. It is an ongoing process. Sometimes, residents may not be able to spot the officers as they are in plainclothes but rest assured that they are patrolling the area.”

ORIGINAL POSTING : theSTAR

Rukun Tetangga Bill 2012 tabled

The Sun Daily

Posted on 17 April 2012 - 06:39pm
Last updated on 18 April 2012 - 10:20am

 

KUALA LUMPUR (April 17, 2012): The Rukun Tetangga Bill 2012, which seeks to make provisions relating to Rukun Tetangga areas, committees and voluntary patrols, was tabled for first reading.
The bill outlines the functions and duties of the Rukun Tetangga committee, which are to strengthen neighbourliness, goodwill, peace and security in communities including acting as mediators to help resolve community conflicts.

A member of the patrol scheme shall go on patrol or do guard duties not more than twice in a month.

A member of the voluntary patrolling scheme, who whilst on patrol duty or guard duty is liable, on conviction to a fine of not exceeding RM2,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both if the member is found guilty of a few abuses such as wilfully giving false information; disobeys the lawful order or direction of a director or the committee; acts in any manner which is obscene, abusive or insulting; uses obscene, abusive or insulting language; acts irresponsibly such as sleeping, gambling or being under the influence of alcohol or drugs; acts negligently or in any manner which is prejudicial to the welfare of the area.
The bill also stipulates that a member who goes on patrolling scheme or guard duty for a period of not less than two hours consecutively after midnight shall, with written notice to his employer, be entitled to time off or be released from work with salary not exceeding four hours.

Members on patrol or guard duty will have the power to stop and inspect any person, vehicle or property in the designated area if he believes the safety of residents is affected.

The bill states that no legal action can be taken against a member if he had acted in good faith when discharging his duties.

The bill also calls for the appointment of a Director-General of Rukun Tetangga who will have the power to designate Rukun Tetangga Areas, appoint Rukun Tetangga area committees and centres to be used by the committee.

theSundaily