Crime kills more people than armed conflicts, UN study finds
Criminal activity is responsible for more deaths around the world than terror attacks and armed conflicts combined, according to a study published on Monday by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The sweeping study found that organized crime is one of the biggest drivers of homicides around the world, and that women are more often killed by their partners or family members.
What are the main takeaways?
- Some 464,000 people around the world were killed in homicides in 2017 — far more than the 89,000 people killed in armed conflicts that same year.
- Organized crime was responsible for up to 19% of deaths worldwide.
- Over 90% of suspects in homicide cases between 2014 – 2016 were men.
- The number of women and girls killed due to domestic violence rose in 2017, accounting for 58% of all female homicide victims.
- Europe has one of the lowest homicide rates in the world, with 3 victims per 100,000 people.
‘The most dangerous place’ for women is at home
Although women and girls make up a smaller portion of global homicides, they are much more likely than men to be killed due to intimate partner violence.
“The home remains the most dangerous place for women, who continue to bear the heaviest burden of lethal victimization as a result of inequality and gender stereotypes,” the UN report said.
Asia logged the highest number of female homicides due to domestic violence in 2017, with around 20,000 victims. The second highest region was Africa, with 19,000 women killed — although due to its smaller population, women there run a higher risk of becoming victims of domestic violence.
Organized crime
Since the year 2000, organized crime has killed as many people as all armed conflicts around the world combined, the study found.
Organized crime and gang violence is “a key driver” of high homicide rates in parts of Central America, with deaths rising due to conflicts between rival groups.
Younger men between the ages of 15 – 29 are at the highest risk of becoming victims of homicide worldwide. The UN report found that this is particularly the case for men in the Americas, where gang-related violence and firearm injuries are the most frequent cause of death.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
One of most violent countries in the world
Honduras has one of the highest homicide rates in the world. In 2011-2012, there were 86 homicides per 100,000 people. That amounted to 7,172 murders a year in a country of some 9 million people. In 2018, the homicide rate fell to 40 per 100,000 people, according to government statistics. In comparison, in 2015 there were some 5,000 homicides in the EU, where the population is 500 million.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
Gang-fueled violence
There are as many as 40,000 gang members in Honduras. Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Barrio-18 (members pictured here) are the two main criminal groups engaging in turf wars over drug and human trafficking, extortion and other criminal enterprises.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
Pushing people out
The wave of violence, gang control and erosion of state authority has pushed tens of thousands of people out of neighborhoods where funeral processions are all too common. Many families fear that their children will be recruited into gangs as early as the age of 11. Many of those who can will often try to make the dangerous and hard journey through Mexico to the United States.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
Existential threat
Gang-fueled violence and criminality have torn apart Honduran society and the authority of the state. According to a report by the US National Defense University, MS-13 has become a “criminal-economic-military-political power that poses an existential threat” to the state of Honduras. The group has infilrated key state institutions, including the police, military, judiciary and political system.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
Police patrols
In Honduras, MS-13 has been known to corrupt and infiltrate local police. The group has expanded with the aid of police forces who have reportedly targeted and cleared neighborhoods controlled by rival groups. Police and security forces sacked for corruption are said to join gangs or train gang members.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
No justice
The corrupt and dysfunctional criminal system fuels more violence. Around 80 percent of homicides are not investigated and 96 percent are not adjudicated.
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Honduras: Land of gangs and violence
Fleeing north
Thousands of Hondurans have tried to make the hard journey north. Many are innocent civilians seeking a better and safer life. However, US authorities say some gang members are trying to infiltrate the United States. At the same time, an influx of gang members being deported from the United States is strengthening gang numbers in Honduras as they are incorporated into structures there.
Education and better support for police
In order to combat the rising number of homicides across the world, the UN outlined several policy proposals to tackle the issues in each region.
Combatting organized crime by improving education, boosting police work in communities to build trust, and creating violence prevention programs targeting young men were listed as possible solutions.
“Unfortunately, the financial resources and political attention currently devoted to this problem at the international level are inadequate,” the study said.
The study also urged for an end to impunity, saying that homicide cases that are not closed with a lawful conviction contribute to a vicious cycle — leading to more killings and overburdening the justice system.
Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/crime-kills-more-people-than-armed-conflicts-un-study-finds/a-49510578?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf