China Crime Stats
Author: Edsel.G
The actual crime rate in China has so far been difficult to assess and confirm. Official statistics from the Chinese government says that crime in China is significantly lower than that of more advanced nations, including and especially the United States. Official estimates say that murder rate in China, for instance, is 5 times lower than that of the US.
Nonetheless, it is safe to say that China is relatively safe for visitors and for locals. The judicial system of the country is efficient enough to convict at least 98% of its criminal cases. The extensive prison system of the country has the second highest number of prisoners (1.55 million prisoners) and the death penalty in the country is the largest all over the world. Although a criminal death through the death penalty has significantly dropped last year to less than 500, it is still by far the largest anywhere. The highly severe punishments for even the most petty crimes and the police visibility in all important areas are usually enough to deter commission of most crimes.
However, terrorism does exist in the country. The huge disparity between rich and poor continues to feed crimes like theft, burglary, and counterfeit money. Rebellion and terrorism also abound in some regions especially in the Xinjiang province seeking more autonomy from the Chinese communist government. Corruption in many levels of the government also abound. Rough official estimates say that around 50 billion dollars are being funneled out of the country every year by corrupt officials. The current President of China, Xi Jinping, has taken serious and significant steps to eradicate the corruption problem with the conviction of key party and military officials accused of the crime.
Background:
Definitions
- Age of criminal responsibility: The age at which a person is no longer excluded from criminal liability. The lowest age is indicated for countries where there isn’t a single age limit, for example where different states have different regulations (such as the USA) or there is different limits for boy and girls (such as in Iran). The spectrum is specifically wide for the USA and Mexico (both 6-12 years). Several US states do not stipulate any minimal age for criminal responsibility at all. For further qualifications, exceptions and other notes, please refer to notes.
- Age of criminal responsibility (notes): Additional information, qualifications, exceptions and notes on the age of criminal responsibility stat, which indicates the age at which a person is no longer excluded from criminal liability.
- Assault rate: Number of assaults recorded by police per 100,000 population
- Assaults: Number of assaults recorded by police in that country per 100,000 population.
- Auto theft: Number of motor vehicle thefts (car thefts) recorded by police in that country per 100,000 population.
- Believes crime increasing in the past 3 years: Crime increasing in the past 3 years. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "In the past three years would you say the level of crime in your community has increased, stayed about the same, or decreased?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Burglaries: Number of burglaries recorded by police in that country per 100,000 population.
- Crime levels: Level of crime. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "How serious you feel the level of crime is?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Drug offences: Drug offence cases per 100,000 population (2000).
- Drugs > HIV infections amongst drug users: Percentage of injecting drug users who are HIV positive.
- Drugs > HIV testing amongst drug users: Estimated percentage of injecting drug users who have been tested for HIV.
- Drugs > Lifetime cannabis use: Adult lifetime cannabis use.
- Drugs > Opiates use: Annual prevalence.
- Executions: Number of known executions in the country (Data is for 2007). Because these figures include only documented cases; the true figures are likely to be higher in many countries.
- Fear of crime > Feels safe walking alone > At night: Safety walking alone during night. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "How safe do you feel walking alone in this city during the night?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Feels safe walking alone > During the day: Safety walking alone during daylight. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "How safe do you feel walking alone in this city during the daylight?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Violent hate crime: Worries being subject to a physical attack because of your skin colour, ethnic origin or religion. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How worried are you about)......being subject to a physical attack because of your skin colour, ethnic origin or religion?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Worries about being attacked: Worries attacked. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How worried are you about)......being physically attacked by strangers?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Worries about being insulted: Worries being insulted. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How worried are you about)......being insulted or pestered by anybody, while in the street or any other public place?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Worries about being mugged or robbed: Worries being mugged or robbed. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How worried are you about)......being mugged and robbed?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Fear of crime > Worries about home break and enter: Worries home broken and things stolen. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "How worried are you about....having your home broken into and something stolen?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Illicit drugs: Crime statistics are often better indicators of prevalence of law enforcement and willingness to report crime, than actual prevalence.
- International Court of Justice > Current composition > Term End: Date term of judges of different nationality in the International Court of Justice will come to an end.
- Judges: Number of professional judges per 100,000 population.
- Judges and Magistrates: Number of Judges and Magistrates
- Justice system > Punishment > Capital punishment (last execution year): Year of last use.
- Murder rate: Homicide rate per year per 100,000 inhabitants in various countries.
- Murders > Per 100,000 people: Intentional homicide rate is the estimate of intentional homicides in a country as a result of domestic disputes that end in a killing, interpersonal violence, violent conflicts over land resources, inter-gang violence over turf or control, and predatory violence and killing by armed groups. The term, intentional homicide, is broad, but it does not include all intentional killing. In particular, deaths arising from armed conflict are usually considered separately. The difference is usually described by the organisation of the killing. Individuals or small groups usually commit homicide, whereas the killing in armed conflict is usually committed by more or less cohesive groups of up to several hundred members. Two main sources of data are presented: criminal justice (law enforcement) measures (this series), supplemented by data from national statistical agencies, and measures from public health sources (see other intentional homicide series). These various sources measure slightly different phenomena and are therefore unlikely to provide identical numbers."
- Murders > WHO: Intentional homicide rate is the estimate of intentional homicides in a country as a result of domestic disputes that end in a killing, interpersonal violence, violent conflicts over land resources, inter-gang violence over turf or control, and predatory violence and killing by armed groups. The term, intentional homicide, is broad, but it does not include all intentional killing. In particular, deaths arising from armed conflict are usually considered separately. The difference is usually described by the organisation of the killing. Individuals or small groups usually commit homicide, whereas the killing in armed conflict is usually committed by more or less cohesive groups of up to several hundred members. Two main sources of data are presented: criminal justice (law enforcement) measures (this series), supplemented by data from national statistical agencies, and measures from public health sources (see other intentional homicide series). These various sources measure slightly different phenomena and are therefore unlikely to provide identical numbers."
- Perceived problems > Illegal drugs: Problem people using or dealing drugs. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How much of a problem are...) people using or dealing drugs?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Perceived problems > Problem corruption and bribery: Problem corruption and bribery. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How much of a problem are...) corruption and bribery?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Perceived problems > Problem violent crimes including assault and armed robbery: Problem violent crimes such as assault and armed robbery. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How much of a problem are...) violent crimes such as assault and armed robbery?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Perceived problems > Property crimes including vandalism and theft: Problem property crimes such as vandalism and theft. Based on 0-50 contributions for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria and 82 more countries and 50-100 contributions for Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria and 24 more countries and over 100 contributions for Australia, Brazil, Canada and 17 more countries. The surveys were conducted by numbeo.com from July, 2011 to February, 2014. See this sample survey for the United States, respondents were asked "(How much of a problem are...) property crimes such as vandalism and theft?". The higher the value, the more survey respondents believe it is high in their country.
- Prisoners: Total persons incarcerated
- Prisoners > Female: Female prisoners, expressed as a percentage share of the total prison population. Data for 2003.
- Prisoners > Per capita: Data for 2003. Number of prisoners held per 100,000 population.
- Prisoners per 1000: Total persons incarcerated. Figures expressed per thousand population for the same year.
- Prosecution rate: Number of people prosecuted.
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Punishment > Crimes possibly attracting life sentence:
Possible other sentence.
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
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Punishment > Crimes requiring mandatory sentence:
Mandatory sentence.
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
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Punishment > Has life imprisonment:
Life imprisonment.
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
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Punishment > Life sentence under the age of 18 or 21:
Under age of 18 (or 21).
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
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Punishment > Maximum length of sentence:
Maximum length of sentence (under life).
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
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Punishment > Minimum life sentence to serve before eligibility for requesting parole:
Minimum to serve before eligibility for requesting parole.
No date was available from the Wikipedia article, so we used the date of retrieval.
- Robberies: Number of robberies recorded by police in that country per 100,000 population.
- Serious assaults: Number of major assaults recorded by police in that country per 100,000 population.
- Software piracy rate: The piracy rate is the total number of units of pirated software deployed in 2007 divided by the total units of software installed.
- Violent crime > Gun crime > Guns per 100 residents: Number of privately owned small firearms per 100 residents.
- Violent crime > Intentional homicide rate: Homicides per 100’000 residents. Homicide is the death of a person purposefully inflicted by another person (it excludes suicides) outside of a state of war. Homicide is a broader category than murder, as it also includes manslaughter. The exact legal definition varies across countries, some of which include infanticide, assisted suicide, euthanasia and deaths caused by dangerous driving.
- Violent crime > Murder rate: Intentional homicide, number and rate per 100,000 population.
- Violent crime > Murder rate per million people: Intentional homicide, number and rate per 100,000 population. Figures expressed per million people for the same year.
- Violent crime > Murders: Intentional homicide, number and rate per 100,000 population.
- Violent crime > Murders per million people: Intentional homicide, number and rate per 100,000 population. Figures expressed per million people for the same year.
SOURCES: Wikipedia: Defense of infancy (Ages of criminal responsibility by country); Wikipedia: Defense of infancy (Ages of criminal responsibility by country); European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control International Statistics on Crime and Justice, 2011; European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control International Statistics on Crime and Justice, 2011; crime; The Eighth United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (2002) (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Centre for International Crime Prevention); Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. Source tables; Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. Source tables; Mostly Table GPS-8 Part (i) ''Lifetime prevalence of drug use among all adults (aged 15 to 64 years old) in nationwide surveys among the general population'' EMCDDA (European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction) unless otherwise referred on Wikipedia: Adult lifetime cannabis use by country; Wikipedia: List of countries by prevalence of opiates use ("World Drug Report 2011" . United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2011. "World Drug Report 2006" . United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2006. http://www.unodc.org/documents/wdr/WDR_2009/WDR2009_eng_web.pdf); Amnesty International; CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 28 March 2011; Various sources compiled into Wikipedia's: International Court of Justice; Wikipedia: Capital punishment in Europe (Abolition); UN Office on Drugs and Crime, UN Survey of Crime Trends, at http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/IHS-rates-05012009.pdf.; World Health Organisation.; International Centre for Prison Studies - World Prison Brief; The Eighth United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and the Operations of Criminal Justice Systems (2002) (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Centre for International Crime Prevention). Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.; Wikipedia: Life imprisonment (Summary by country); Fifth Annual BSA and IDC Global Software Piracy Study; Annexe I of the Small Arms Survey 2007 ; Wikipedia: List of countries by intentional homicide rate by decade; United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Source tables; United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Source tables. Population figures from World Bank: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects, (2) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Report (various years), (3) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (4) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (5) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme, and (6) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database.
Citation
China Crime Profiles (Subcategories)
| Drugs 4 | Prosecutions 4 |
| Fear of crime 9 | Punishment 6 |
| Perceived problems 4 | Violent crime 6 |
| Prisoners 3 |
2
The actual crime rate in China has so far been difficult to assess and confirm. Official statistics from the Chinese government says that crime in China is significantly lower than that of more advanced nations, including and especially the United States. Official estimates say that murder rate in China, for instance, is 5 times lower than that of the US.
Nonetheless, it is safe to say that China is relatively safe for visitors and for locals. The judicial system of the country is efficient enough to convict at least 98% of its criminal cases. The extensive prison system of the country has the second highest number of prisoners (1.55 million prisoners) and the death penalty in the country is the largest all over the world. Although a criminal death through the death penalty has significantly dropped last year to less than 500, it is still by far the largest anywhere. The highly severe punishments for even the most petty crimes and the police visibility in all important areas are usually enough to deter commission of most crimes.
However, terrorism does exist in the country. The huge disparity between rich and poor continues to feed crimes like theft, burglary, and counterfeit money. Rebellion and terrorism also abound in some regions especially in the Xinjiang province seeking more autonomy from the Chinese communist government. Corruption in many levels of the government also abound. Rough official estimates say that around 50 billion dollars are being funneled out of the country every year by corrupt officials. The current President of China, Xi Jinping, has taken serious and significant steps to eradicate the corruption problem with the conviction of key party and military officials accused of the crime.
Posted on 06 Apr 2014
Edsel.G
247 Stat enthusiast