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Cyph0n

If you want to see truly safe cities, even by EU standards, check out Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, or Doha.

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With the exception of Hong Kong, aren't these all pretty authoritarian states?

Didn't Hong Kong pass over to China about a decade ago?

Hong Kong is still a SAR.

But slightly more and more in name only, with Beijing controlling it more, politically.

It was 20 years ago, in 1997.

unfortunately, Hong Kong is turning authoritarian too, with only a semblance of democracy under the iron thumb of Beijing.

Unfortunately England sold out Hong Kong

They didn't have much choice. The new territories had to go back because they were leased. So all that they could have held on to was Hong Kong island and Kowloon. There wasn't the infrastructure to maintain those areas. And China was a very different place in those days, the insane crap that they said to the British during handover negotiations made anything Donald Trump saying today look intelligent... It was a stressful time to be living there. So today Hong Kong is a Chinese colony instead of a slightly (yes, slightly) more benign British colony.

Slightly? As far as I know, the United Kingdom is a democracy while China is an oppressive, imperialist, authoritarian state under oligarchic rule, with complete disregard for human rights or the cries for independence and democracy from its dependencies. Would it be ruled by Britain instead of China there would be a world of difference, don't kid yourself.

Can you name a democratic country with 1 billion+ people that has achieved what China has in such a short period of time? Nope. Do you think China would have progressed the same if it wasn't managed as an autocracy?

So the ends justify the means, is what you're saying?

Nope. Read my comment again. Here, I'll make it easier:

> Can you name a democratic country with 1 billion+ people that has achieved what China has in such a short period of time? Nope. Do you think China would have progressed the same if it wasn't managed as an autocracy?

Who cares 1,300,000,000 people live without liberty and are subject to humans rights violations? They make cheap shit. Is that what you're saying?

I asked you two questions, and you answer with another question.

> They make cheap shit.

What?

I'm not sure about Singapore, but Doha and Dubai are the both capital cities of a monarchy: Qatar and UAE, respectively. Keep that in mind if you ever visit.

I lived in the UAE for ~14 years, so I can give you some idea of how safe Dubai is.

- You can leave your car in a parking lot for hours, unlocked, with expensive devices clearly visible. Nobody would even come close to it.

- There is no need to lock your house when you leave. People usually do though, because it just make sense to do so.

- You can walk virtually anywhere in Dubai at any time of night, completely alone. Nobody will bother you.

- The UAE has some of the friendliest police I've ever seen. Oh, and they are extremely professional and responsive, and are insanely good at what they do [1].

In my 14 years living there, I have never once been robbed, have never even witnessed a crime or robbery, nor have I ever heard of someone (e.g., friends) falling victim to one. The only incident was a break-in at the home of a family we knew. That's it.

And I hear that Doha is even safer than Dubai!

[1]: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Assassination_of_Mahmoud_Al-Mabh...

Haha, that sounds like back home in western Maine, if you're a local who isn't a known drunk or stoner. Even then, you can leave everything unlocked, without fear

Safe for tourists, not for residents.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/may/27/dubai-...

Yep, their human rights track record is terrible, but even with that, Dubai is still safer than most other large cities.

What do you mean by "tourists"? Did you miss the part where I say that I lived in the UAE for 14 years?

You are probably not an Indian construction worker.

I'm not. Read my bio. But a fact is a fact: Dubai is one of the safest cities in the world.

I think you are willfully missing the point. You cannot compare Dubai's "Safe" to other place's "Safe" because other places view things like woman being raped as "unsafe" and Dubai does not.

Being an Indian construction worker, means being more likely to be killed institutionally. For example by ridiculous hazards at work that any other "Safe" place outlawed decades ago. It could also mean being arrested, harrassed and deported (or arrested and thrown in a hole, I don't know; racist gulag numbers are not exactly officially published) for speaking out of line.

Let's not even touch religion.

You are perfectly correct that Dubai is "Safe" for some definition of "Safe" suitable only for White or Arabian, Muslim or rich Christian Men.

That's exactly the point. I am not including the government in my definition of safety. Rather, the focus is purely on safety from an illegal point of view (murder, rape, robbery, etc.).

This is not a very good way to look at things, because a place without any law and order would be "safe" by these standards. If rape is not illegal, women being raped is allowed. If murder is not illegal, people being stabbed or shot to death would be just the normal way of life.

Not my idea of "safe".

...or a woman

"Yep they commit atrocious humans rights violations and systematically abuse migrant workers, but at least you can leave your car unlocked." And Mussolini made the trains run on time.

I'm just stating facts here, no need to get emotional mate.

Dubai is plenty safe unless you're a woman getting raped aka enjoying sex outside of marriage.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosecution_of_Marte_Dalelv

I've been living in Abu Dhabi (capital of UAE) for the last 12 years and although I started getting more and more annoyed with the country, I can absolutely confirm what you're saying. Safety is almost always at the top of the pros/cons list.

Dubai is really not safe for unmarried couples. It's a total non-starter, even for a holiday.

This article is more about systemic state corruption though and not petty street crime. There's still gangsters in Singapore and Hong Kong, and if you worked at a newspaper writing about them and their connections to politicians you would have problems. If you decided to start writing about the prostitution racket in Dubai you could disappear pretty quick too.

I was replying to a comment about crime in Mexico City, not the article.

Or Montreal!

Never been, but I would assume it's an amazing place. I would love to visit someday :)

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