Asian community divided on proposed reforms to combat retail crime

Asian community leaders are divided on whether proposed reforms to give retailers wider power to detain shoplifters will benefit small business owners battling an increase in retail crime.

The announcement by Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith on Wednesday is part of a raft of reforms proposed by the advisory group on retail crime that launched in September.

These include amending the Crimes Act 1961 so that citizens can intervene to stop any Crimes Act offence at any time of the day, obliging a person making an arrest to inform police, clarifying that "reasonable" restraints can be used when making an arrest and changing the defence of property provisions in the Crimes Act so it is clear reasonable force can be used.

Under current legislation, anyone can make an arrest at night where there are reasonable grounds for believing a person is committing an offence.

A warrantless arrest can be made if the offender is committing a crime for which the maximum punishment is at least three years imprisonment.

Goldsmith said retail crime had risen 85 percent between 2019 and 2023, including a 91 percent increase in victimisations relating to theft.

Richard Leung, chairman of the New Zealand Chinese Association's Auckland branch, said the proposed changes could give business owners a greater sense of security against theft and shoplifting, which had been a growing concern.

However, Leung also said the positives came with risks attached.

"The changes could also lead to unintended risks, such as increased confrontations or racial profiling, potentially putting Chinese business owners and community members in dangerous situations," Leung said.

"There is also concern that misunderstandings or biases could lead to unfair detentions, affecting social harmony and trust in law enforcement."

Leung said it was important for the government to provide education in other languages on how the legislation would function to ensure all communities could understand and comply with the law.

Rosa Chow, chair of the Asian Council on Reducing Crime, expressed similar reservations on the changes, calling on the government to provide training to retailers on how to handle themselves when confronting offenders.

Rajesh Goel, president of the Auckland Indian Retailers Association, was blunt in his overall assessment, calling the announcements an "eye wash".

"We are small business owners," Goel said. "We don't have the margins to hire security guards who would be able to detain shoplifters."

Goel believed the proposed measures would benefit larger players in the retail sector and leave smaller operators struggling to confront offenders.

"Our demands, as submitted in a petition to the government last year, remains the same," he said.

"We have called for amendments in the Sentencing Act, Criminal Justice Act and Oranga Tamariki Act to allow authorities to arrest, detain in remand custody and punish young offenders under the age of 16.

"The proposed changes ... don't go far enough, we feel."

Arunjeev Singh, coordinator of Crime Resistance Foundation, called the proposal to expand citizen's arrest powers "too little, too late".

Singh called on the government to provide some guidance on what constituted reasonable force.

"The government must instil confidence in the minds of the citizens that the law will protect them if they took steps to defend their person or property in case of a violent crime," he said.

Jithin Chittibomma, chairperson of the Sandringham Business Association, believed the proposed reforms wouldn't materially change the overall outcome for retailers.

"As a small business owner, I have no desire to confront a shoplifter, nor can I afford to hire security guards. In my experience, the real failure lies within the legal system," Chittibomma said.

"Once clear evidence such as surveillance footage is provided, shoplifting should be treated as a non-bailable offence with a minimum jail term. Right now, there is no real deterrent, and offenders have nothing to fear."

Gurdeep Singh, owner of a jewellery store in South Auckland's Papatoetoe that suffered a vicious aggravated robbery in June, agreed.

"I'm not very convinced [by the proposed reforms]," Singh said. "Detaining an offender by a retailer or by a person of public is going to create more issues and I believe that people will put their life [at] risk if they intervene in such scenario."

Singh, who was hospitalised after being struck multiple times in the head with a hammer by an assailant during the 2024 attack, believed real change would come once the justice system was reformed.

"Detaining a person by members of the public is not going to help," he said. "Police [will] always catch the offender, if not at the scene, maybe a day or two later or sometimes a few weeks later. What happens after that is the problem."

Narendra Bhana, president of the New Zealand Indian Central Association, outlined the association's concerns in a letter to Goldsmith on Wednesday.

"The concept of empowering citizens to make arrests, while potentially beneficial in specific circumstances, raises several concerns in relation to public safety, and the potential for misuse or escalation of situations," Bhana wrote in the letter.

"Any powers granted should come with clearly defined guidelines and robust training requirements. The consequences of ill-prepared citizens intervening in volatile situations should be carefully considered.

"Moreover, any citizen intervention must be proportionate, and care must be taken to avoid racial profiling, discrimination or other harmful practices."

Jaspreet Kandhari, general secretary of the New Zealand Indian Business Association, supported the proposed reform.

He demanded that any theft, regardless of the value of the stolen goods, should carry a minimum penalty of three months' imprisonment.

"While there are concerns about the increased safety risks associated with making arrests, these changes will provide retailers with greater confidence and flexibility in dealing with petty offenders," Kandhari said.

"The current lack of legislative provisions has emboldened shoplifters and thieves, making it increasingly difficult for businesses to protect their livelihoods," he said.

"Unlike large corporate retailers and retail chains, small businesses operate on much thinner margins and often cannot absorb the financial strain caused by theft," he said.

"These losses are frequently unrecoverable due to insurance excess limits and, even when covered, lead to rising premiums that place further pressure on already struggling businesses."

Dairy and Business Owners Group vice-chair Himanshu Parmar, who is also a member of the advisory group on retail crime, defended the recommendations the group submitted to the government, calling them "commonsensical".

"For years we've advocated for common sense law changes that increase the chances of criminals being caught," Parmar said. "What's being proposed is hardly radical when Australia, Canada and the UK have similar laws.

"Doing nothing is no answer and with one police officer to 500 Kiwis, criminals have become bolder and more violent. They know we cannot physically defend our property without running the risk of being criminalised.

"If criminals know law-abiding Kiwis can defend their stuff, whether a homeowner, a farmer or a retailer, they'll think twice."

Asked for a response on demands from community leaders following Wednesday's announcement, Paul Goldsmith's office said such details would be determined as legislation moved through the House and Select Committee process.