Chinese views on UK safety

"Last month, while helping a friend, I left my phone unattended for less than a minute and it was stolen. I called the police and was told there was no closed-circuit camera nearby and that there was nothing they could do. But that shouldn't be the case. My landlord told me normally the police will at least keep a record and ask for my phone's serial number, so that they can disable it. After hearing that, I was shocked. I wasn't sure whether such indifference could be taken as discrimination.

"I didn't worry about safety issues before I came to the UK. Before reports of robbers targeting Chinese students in Birmingham went viral, I would usually stay at the school's laboratory until 7 or 8 pm. But now I'm concerned about going alone and go home no later than 6 pm."

Zhang Qian22, a student at the University of Birmingham

"After staying in London for nine years, I'm confident in my personal safety. I heard about the recent robberies, but I don't think the cases were targeted at Chinese. It's always wise to stay low-profile and avoid going out alone at night. And call police when you are in trouble."

Maggie Wu, 26, a postgraduate student of BPP University in west London

"I've been here for nearly two months. Sometimes, I feel uncomfortable, if not offended, by strangers trying to strike up a conversation. There was an attempted break-in at my apartment. I don't know what would happen if I didn't lock the door properly."

Cao Lifang, 20, a student at the University of Birmingham

"I haven't come across any violence in London, but I'd keep safety issues in mind once outside the city, as some places are not very welcoming."

Kevin Gao29, an IT worker in London

(China Daily European Weekly 08/26/2016 page14)