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In your experience, which country is the safest to live in?

44 Comments

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44 Comments
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Japan

2 ( +4 / -2 )

All three countries I've lived in - Australia, UK, and Japan - I'd consider pretty safe. Never ran into many dangers thus far!

1 ( +4 / -3 )

I would say Japan is safer than my home country, the UK. Too many gaijin there!

-6 ( +5 / -11 )

Japan! Way safer than my home country Puerto Rico or USA.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Japan. Singapore. HK kind of if you avoid drunken late nights in LKF or the 'chai (too many drunken gwailo). Other places i have lived can be safe if you are careful of where you go and when you go there except South Africa which is pretty dangerous almost everywhere.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Is this a trick question? Japan.

3 ( +8 / -5 )

Japan would have to be the place I feel the safest, then Singapore, some other places can be pretty wild and dangerous once the drinks flow and the night falls.

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Although my hometown Sydney is incredibly safe, I still don't think it comes close to Japan.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Japan has made me soft. I'm scared to leave the house when I go back to England, especially after dark. My twenty-one-year-old self, living in Rio, would be disgusted....

2 ( +6 / -4 )

Japan and Singapore. I'm from Hawaii, but even Hawaii is a little dangerous.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Singapore.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

If you compare cities of similar size, Japan pretty much always gets the win.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Canada.

Have never been grabbed, felt up or attacked by a stranger there nor have I ever had anything stolen. Can't say the same for Japan.

2 ( +12 / -10 )

Japan, and to be frank the hard line on drugs here goes a long way in ensuring safety.

4 ( +10 / -6 )

I suppose it really all depends on who you are. If you're a victim of international sex trafficking, Japan probably isn't the safest place for you. Alot of domestic violence also goes unreported in Japan.

I think the best answer to the question is probably a statistical outlier like Liechtenstein, but unfortunately I've never lived there.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Japan.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Japan.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Without question, Switzerland and anywhere in Scandinavia for overall highest level of personal safety. Japan can't touch these places.

I don't buy this age-old falsehood of Japan as being 'safe'. Sure Japan has a low petty-crime rate and people are fairly passive and reserved so don't feel threatening. But don't forget you have influential and destructive organised crime in this country.

Whats more, we live next door to a rouge state developing nuclear missiles, and a nation bent on exercises it's growing military might in Asia (China). If you're a woman you face the constant threat of stalkers in the streets and sexual abuse on public transport. Children and elderly have to literally walk among the traffic on a daily basis.

No, I don't consider Japan as particularly 'safe, sorry.

-1 ( +7 / -8 )

U.A.E.

(Especially when ya have money)

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

I've only ever lived in the UK, but I've been to Japan many times and I'd say it's the safest - despite the earthquakes and knife-wielding nutters in the summer. I go to Japan and I instantly feel more relaxed.

-1 ( +5 / -6 )

I believe (from personal experience of living and working in several countries around the world in Europe, Asia, and Oceania) that Japan and Singapore are the two countries where I feel the safest. However, I have to wonder why they are two of the countries with the lowest birthrates. If they are so safe, then why don't people seem to feel safe giving birth here?

Moderator: Please repost without the references to the birthrate which is, of course, irrelevant.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

It depends on many things, like most everything in life. If your a big gaijin in Japan, other than the usual challenges, your pretty safe. If your Japanese, its not so safe. If you a gaijin from one of the former colonies of Japan, perhaps not always safe. Things are brewing in Japan, its just held back; any long termer knows this. Once it spills over, then there is danger. As for mental stress, inequality, mental illness and other factors, Japan wins hands down.

True, due to a strict drug control law and non existant handguns for civilians, its pretty safe. I never felt danger in another country because I dont feel different. I feel danger in Japan allot, because Im told Im not one of the Wa. Danger is in every country, but there are ways to avoid it. I too, dont share the widely shared view that Japan is so safe. In the fuedal times, it was a horrible and dangerous place to live. Cant tell me there is some of that residue still in society today.

-1 ( +6 / -7 )

We live in turbulent times and the crime situation around the world is tense but hands down Japan is the safest country in Asia for men and women to live in. Next would be Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea. Outside of Japan it would have to be Norway, New Zealand, Denmark and Iceland. If you want to escape from world conflicts and live in peace then Tuvalu is a very safe, remote beautiful island nation to live in.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

All countries have their good and bad. But this gaijin puts Canada at the top, Japan a close second.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I have been drunk very late at night in many parts of Tokyo and have never felt un-safe. I am 5'11'' and 210 lbs with a shaved head and very blue eyes and can speak guttural (very scary) Japanese.

My mother in law is from Niigata. She scares me!!

I do find Japan very safe...except for barking salariman on the train platform late at night.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Japan. Where else in the world can you get completely lost and get off of a train or subway anywhere without worrying about being knifed or shot?

2 ( +6 / -4 )

In my view Japan is very safe, said that my hometown/capital has a lower overall crime-rate. India has a huge groping/harrasment trouble. Hungary, Yugoslavia, most of europe were OK, Italy was very unsafe, Greece was very safe. South Africa/Africa was lets say I felt safer in some high crime areas globally.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Japan. Considering it's the only country (that I'm aware of) where security guards transport money on foot carrying only batons, can't really say this should come as a surprise to anyone.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Novenachama

I know NZ gets listed often as being a relatively safe place but believe it is not that safe, there are many parts you would not want to walk alone either at night or in the daytime.

Tourists are often attacked and robbed, the locals know where the safe parts are where not to go.

Thugs sometimes have complete control of some town centres and rob and steal at will.

Read the NZ herald on a daily basis to get a realistic idea.

1 ( +6 / -5 )

@Storm

People are making judgments based on their own experience of 'feeling' safe which is nice but not very objective. Okay, you 'feel' safe in Japan because people are generally very submissive as par of the course.

NZ has the least corrupt police force in the world and with a tough and strict criminal justice system the loss of lives in crimes is almost zero and the rate of crimes solved is among the highest. All of this ensure a high degree of safety for citizens whether you 'feel' safe or not.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

Switzerland.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

igloobuyer you are not well informed are you, murders in NZ are running highest ever with sometimes 2 or 3 a week, so that refutes your loss of lives at almost zero claim, and the solving of crimes rate is very distorted as the police have been found to have stopped recording many crimes and will not attend burglaries anymore or car thefts, ask me how I know these things.

I read the news from there every day and listen to the radio from there every day and have family there.

Have you even been there?

2 ( +6 / -4 )

Singapore, Norway and then Japan.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I lived in NZ for 25 years during the years when crime 'peaked' and never felt it was at all dangerous. Crime rates there have been steadily dropping since the '90s so I imagine it would be safer than ever.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

In my experience I've only been to a few countries: Japan, Canada, US, Brazil, Mexico, Thailand, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia. Of those, Japan seems the safest to me, but not 100% safe by any stretch.

Every country has "Bad apples" and also bad neighborhoods, but in Japan, the general population IMO is less inclined to harm or steal from another person. For example, my home country of Canada is relatively safe, but I've had a bike stolen as a kid, a car stolen and another one broken into, vandalism is pretty common, and street/bar fights break out all the time; and this is in a relatively small city. A lot of these crimes are committed by "average people" in Canada who are not related to any gangs or mafia, and otherwise lead "normal" lives, which is scary to me.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

For men I would say Japan. As a woman, I would say absolutely not in Japan. Japanese see a woman under attack and look the other way. In the UK when someone took advantage of my gender and size to try and have a go at me on the train within seconds there were 4 men jumping in to defend me and suddenly he wasnt such a "big man" after all. There are good and bad wherever you go, but the culture is the mark of a country Most UK/US/Canada etc men I know would step up if needed. Cant say the same for Japanese men sadly.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Everything I've experienced tells me: Japan.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Japan is safer than Canada in my experience.

I was attacked 3 times in Canada, once by a steroid-pumped a??hole, once by a pill-popping hoodlum, and once by a mugger.

Japan? Nope.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

For photographers Japan is the safest country. No risk of being beaten up when taking photos of people on the street.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Of course Japan. But be careful everywhere

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

It goes without saying that Japan is the safest country to live in.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Japan

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Japan of course safety is the reason why I will live in Japan forever.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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