Excluding criminal violations involving traffic accidents, about 2.27 million crimes came to the attention of police in 2005, according to the 2006 white paper on crime. The figure was 11.4 percent lower than the year before and around 20 percent (580,000 incidents) lower than the peak year 2002. The overall decline should serve as a catalyst for encouraging the government as well as the public to enhance their crime-prevention efforts.
The decline occurred mainly in thefts, which accounted for about three-quarters of the nonvehicular penal code offenses in 2005. The number of theft cases -- 1.72 million -- was down 27.4 percent (652,000 incidents) from the peak of 2.37 million in 2002.
The white paper, compiled and published by the Research and Training Institute of the Justice Ministry, offers insight into the relationship between crime and the general social situation. It says a high unemployment rate leads to an increase in thefts and other property-related crimes, while a low unemployment rate presages a decrease in overall crime.