Time to tackle knife attacks

A woman stabbed 14 children with a kitchen knife at a kindergarten in Chongqing on Friday. This wasn't the first such incident. In June, a man attacked primary school students with a knife in Shanghai, leaving two boys dead and two students and a parent injured. And in April, a man killed nine middle school students and injured 12 in a knife attack in Shaanxi province.

That attacks on schoolchildren have increased in recent years around the country is not debatable anymore, although what is still not clear are the reasons. Some have claimed these attacks are inspired by the March 2010 incident when a man killed eight primary school students in Fujian province. Just one month later, on the exact day the perpetrator was executed, 16 students and a teacher were wounded in a similar attack in Guangdong province. Since then there have been at least two such incidents across the nation every year, resulting in multiple casualties.

So what are the reasons behind this spike in attacks? Well, first thing first. It goes without saying that even one attack on children is one too much. But this does not mean we should start panicking. China has a population of 1.4 billion people and is one of the largest countries in terms of total area. Compared to other nations, such crimes are still rare in China. A major reason is that the country has one of the toughest gun control laws in the world. Not only it's nearly impossible for a common person to acquire a firearm, even hunting rifles are banned. Second big reason is strict implementation of law. Any person caught with any illegal weapon is almost certain to face a lengthy prison term.

And it's not just guns that are tightly controlled. The government has taken various measures in recent years to strengthen security, especially around schools. These steps range from surveillance cameras to security guards to even police presence. Unfortunately, sometimes even all these measures are unable to deter a person determined to carry out a crime. While it is true that guaranteeing full-proof security in a country as huge as China is impossible, there are certain steps that can help to further reduce such attacks.

Since most of the perpetrators were diagnosed with some sort of mental health issues, the first measure is to provide better medical care to people suffering from mental problems. It is estimated that more than 150 million people in the country have some mental illness, but facilities equipped to treat them are far from sufficient. This is one area where both the government and private sector can invest more resources. Apart from the security issue, better medical care can help these patients become more productive part of society.

Second is building a better grievance handling mechanism. Due to the global economic system, there's more job insecurity now than ever before, inequality is rising and those left behind are nursing a grievance against society – and all these problems will continue to increase in the foreseeable future. While addressing these underlying issues is crucial, the government should also strengthen outlets where people with genuine grievances can seek solutions. Whether it is property dispute, employment issue or even marital problems, the authorities at local level should reach out and proactively assist any claim of unfair treatment before things go out of hand. Again, it's next to impossible to treat every troubled person, but the goal here should be to reduce risks as much as possible.

Third, enhancing the role of community centers. It's neighborhoods and local communities that are better equipped than anybody else in spotting unusual behavior, defusing any disputes and alerting authorities. The local governments should work toward improving and strengthening the role of neighborhood watch and community centers.

These steps in themselves will not resolve all the underlying causes, but will go a long way in not only creating a safer environment for children but also help those in distress.

The author is a journalist with more than 18 years experience in media.