A survey prepared by the Portuguese Victim Support Association, concludes that people in Portugal do not walk around worried that they are going to be attacked, robbed or abused and are much happier as a result, certainly happier than five years ago when gloom and despondency shrouded the country.
This is how Portuguese responded when asked about their feelings about becoming a victim of crime.
This is the second ‘perception of insecurity’ survey prepared by the Portuguese Association for Victim Support and shows a happier bunch of respondents, now a spring in their step and a cheery "bom dia" to all and sundry.
Specific questions were asked about the feeling of security in relation to their property and to themselves, and also about any personal experiences in the last year.
A total of 90% of those asked considered their home area safe, with the other 10% complaining about their general neighbourhood, especially at night.
Seventy-seven percent say they are not afraid of being abused or assaulted when out and about with 90% of respondents saying they are not frightened that they might be abused, threatened or robbed inside their homes.
The Victims Support organisation teamed up with Intercampus and repeated the 2012 Crime and Insecurity survey questionnaire.
The data released today is from 600 interviews conducted last Autumn with a selection of people aged 15 or over and living in mainland Portugal.
Overall, there was a noticeable “tendency to express a lower sense of insecurity when compared with the results obtained in 2012.”
The secretary general of the organisation, Carmen Rasquete, said “It is very positive to see this decrease in the sense of insecurity regarding criminality," suggesting that there is more social harmony at the moment, as well as "a more optimistic climate, greater security and economic growth."
The 2012 survey was taken in the middle of Portugal's economic crisis which had caused a lot of pessimism about life, the universe and everything.
