According to the 2011 Global Study on Homicide by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Iceland's homicide rate between 1999-2009 never went above 1.8 per 100,000 population on any given year. On the other hand, the US had homicide rates between 5.0 and 5.8 per 100,000 population during that same stretch.
It is, therefore, shocking for this country with just over 300,000 people to hear a news report that a 59-year old man was shot dead by police last 2 December. The man, who started shooting at police when they entered his building, had a history of mental illness.
In fact, it is the first time someone has been killed by armed police in Iceland since it became an independent republic in 1944. Police don't even carry weapons, usually. The only officers permitted to carry firearms are on a special force called the Viking Squad, and they are seldom called out.
Crimes in Iceland – when they occur – usually do not involve firearms, though Icelanders own plenty of guns. GunPolicy.org estimates there are approximately 90,000 guns in the country.
Iceland may rank 15th in the world when it comes to the per capita legal gun ownership, but acquiring a gun is not an easy process. Several stringent steps will have to be followed, including a medical examination and a written test.
So what Iceland was doing right?
Many surmise that it is because there is virtually no difference among upper, middle and lower classes in Iceland. And with that, tension between economic classes is non-existent, a rare occurrence for any country.
According to a study of the Icelandic class system done by a University of Missouri master's student, only 1.1 percent of participants identified themselves as upper class, while 1.5 percent saw themselves as lower class. The remaining 97 percent identified themselves as upper-middle class, lower-middle class, or working class.
There is also a tradition in Iceland of pre-empting crime issues before they arise, or stopping issues at the nascent stages before they can get worse.
For instance, police are cracking down on organised crime right now while members of the Icelandic parliament, Althingi, are considering laws that will aid in dismantling these networks.
When drugs seemed to be a burgeoning issue in the country, the parliament established a separate drug police and drug court. That was in 1973.
There may be other reasons for the low crime rate in Iceland which are related to culture, religion and values, but for now it is clear that no class distinction and pre-emptive strikes are the two most important elements of their peace and order situation.
It is, therefore, shocking for this country with just over 300,000 people to hear a news report that a 59-year old man was shot dead by police last 2 December. The man, who started shooting at police when they entered his building, had a history of mental illness.
In fact, it is the first time someone has been killed by armed police in Iceland since it became an independent republic in 1944. Police don't even carry weapons, usually. The only officers permitted to carry firearms are on a special force called the Viking Squad, and they are seldom called out.
Crimes in Iceland – when they occur – usually do not involve firearms, though Icelanders own plenty of guns. GunPolicy.org estimates there are approximately 90,000 guns in the country.
Iceland may rank 15th in the world when it comes to the per capita legal gun ownership, but acquiring a gun is not an easy process. Several stringent steps will have to be followed, including a medical examination and a written test.
So what Iceland was doing right?
Many surmise that it is because there is virtually no difference among upper, middle and lower classes in Iceland. And with that, tension between economic classes is non-existent, a rare occurrence for any country.
According to a study of the Icelandic class system done by a University of Missouri master's student, only 1.1 percent of participants identified themselves as upper class, while 1.5 percent saw themselves as lower class. The remaining 97 percent identified themselves as upper-middle class, lower-middle class, or working class.
There is also a tradition in Iceland of pre-empting crime issues before they arise, or stopping issues at the nascent stages before they can get worse.
For instance, police are cracking down on organised crime right now while members of the Icelandic parliament, Althingi, are considering laws that will aid in dismantling these networks.
When drugs seemed to be a burgeoning issue in the country, the parliament established a separate drug police and drug court. That was in 1973.
There may be other reasons for the low crime rate in Iceland which are related to culture, religion and values, but for now it is clear that no class distinction and pre-emptive strikes are the two most important elements of their peace and order situation.