In 106th place among the 163 countries analyzed in a ranking of the safest places in the world, Brazil is definitely going through a period of great public insecurity. This is indicated by the Global Peace Index 2018, a research carried out by the IEP (Institute for Economics and Peace), which analyzes worldwide the efforts countries make for peace, not only in relation to their own territories, but also globally. Iceland, New Zealand and Austria were elected, in that order, the three safest and most peaceful nations in the world. These countries can be considered a dream come true in a world that, according to the index, is in the fourth year of a negative tendency.
Iceland
Since the first edition of the Global Peace Index in 2008, Iceland has never lost its leadership in the ranking. In this European country, considered the safest and most peaceful in the world, street crimes simply do not exist. The number of homicides in the country is under 2.0 per 100 thousand inhabitants (in comparison, Brazil has a rate of 30.3). Social equality and investment in education are the ingredients for a low violence rate.
New Zealand
Representing Oceania in the TOP 10 of the index, New Zealand is one of the least corrupt and most prosperous nations in the world. An example of economic and political stability, along with respect for human rights, this small country, smaller than the state of São Paulo, is home to a feeling of safety. For instance, with rare exceptions, local policemen do not patrol the streets carrying firearms, and this does not keep the rate of violence and attacks on civilians from being extremely low in the small and safe country.
Austria
With the highest Index of Human Development in the world, the Austrian standard of living is a basic factor for the low rate of violence and crime. The feeling of safety citizens have reflects directly on the local economy, increasingly expanded in a solid infrastructure of business and leisure. One of the local society’s concerns is the access to weapons by citizens, a factor that diminishes the feeling of safety in relation to the two countries placed at the top of the index.
Understand the Global Peace Index
The Global Peace Index covers 99.7% of the world population, and considers over 20 indicators, such as number of homicides, security apparatus, incarceration, and even political instability and relationships with neighboring countries. Based on this data, the ranking defines the most peaceful countries and the most unstable regarding security, according to reverse scoring, since the smaller a country is, the greater is its stability. You can access the report by clicking here, but here goes a negative spoiler: according to Steve Killelea, founder and director of the IEP, peace in the world has decreased in the last ten years.
Worrisome Brazilian numbers
If you’re thinking of moving away from Brazil due to insecurity, your fears are not baseless. According to the “Atlas of Violence 2018: homicides” published in the first week of June by the Ministry of Health, the country reached a worrisome rate of 30 murders per 100 thousand inhabitants in 2016. The number is frightening: there were 62517 deaths, which equals 30 times the indicators in Europe, for instance. Data like this shows why Brazil is the third worse country in South America to live in, according to the Global Peace Index, where Brazil is placed ahead of only Venezuela (143rd) and Colombia (145th).
