1

East Asia and the Pacific have experienced rapid economic and social changes during the past
few decades and faced the considerable regulation challenges these changes create for public
authorities.
This report takes a look at the manner in which criminal enterprises have developed alongside
legitimate commerce in recent years. Drawing on official statistics, academic studies, and
interviews with law enforcement officials, it attempts to outline something about the mechanics
of illicit trade
The mechanics of trafficking are discussed for a nonexhaustive list of 12 illicit flows, which
themselves are organized under four headings:
1. Human trafficking and smuggling of migrants
2. Illicit drugs (heroin and methamphetamine)
3. Resources (wildlife, wood products) and pollution crime (e-waste, ozone-depleting
substances)
4. Products (counterfeit goods, fraudulent medicines)
The Safe Cities Index is an initiative sponsored by the Economist magazine, and uses four
categories to determine the perceived safety of a given city. The categories are:
1. Digital security which measures how likely one is to be a victim of privacy violations or
identity theft through the internet. Availability of technology and its level is also measured.
2. Health security which measures ease of access to care for residents, as well as its quality.
Air and water quality is also taken into consideration, as is life expectancy.
3. Infrastructure safety which measures the resilience and safety of urban infrastructure,
particularly against potential disasters. Frequency of accidents is measured along with the
standards with which infrastructure is held to.
4. Personal safety measures the incurrence of violent and petty crime, drug use, theft, and
violence. How safe residents generally feel in their city is also taken into consideration.
Data was sourced from cities on overall liveability, as well as data from the World Health
Organization (WHO), the Kaspersky Lab, and other sources. The higher the score is to 100, the
safer the city's ranking is considered. Below is an overview of where major Asian cities fall
within this ranking.

10. Mumbai, India (61.84/100)

Mumbai is the most populous city in all of India, with an metropolitan population of over 20
million residents. Its scores were 54.61 in digital security, 55.74 in health security, 59.12 in
infrastructure security, and 77.89 in personal security. Part of Mumbai's reputation of lacking
safety has been blamed on a massive network of underground organized crime. Drug trafficking
has also been cited, as well as money laundering. Residential theft is also a concern in Mumbai.
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9. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (61.23/100)

Riyadh is the capital of Saudi Arabia, as well as the most populous with an urban population of
over four million. Riyadh scored 60.86 in digital security, 66.13 in health security, 56.88 in
infrastructure security, and 61.04 in personal security. Although the crime rate of Saudi Arabia
has historically been seen as low, it has been noted that the crime rate appears to be drastically
increasing. Petty crime is particularly cited as an area of concern, as is the risk of terrorism.
However, the murder rate overall remains low.

8. Bangkok, Thailand (60.05/100)

Bangkok, the capital of Thailand with a population of nearly 15 million in its metropolitan area,
falls in 8th place on this list. Its scores were 44.44 in digital security, 66.64 in health security,
68.33 in infrastructure safety, 60.80 in personal safety. Drug abuse, organized gangs, and
corruption have all been cited as possible causes of crime in Bangkok. In recent years, the
homicide of tourists and expatriates in Thailand have made the news, spreading the reputation of
Bangkok as a dangerous city to visit.

7. Tehran, Iran (56.49/100)

Tehran is the largest city as well as the capital of Iran, with a population of 9 million within the
city and 16 million in the wide metropolitan area. Tehran scored 39.88 in digital security, 62.96
in health security, 63.95 in infrastructure security, and 59.18 in personal security. Drug
trafficking and selling, alcohol smuggling, oil smuggling, tax evasion, kidnapping, theft, fraud,
money laundering and even murder occur in Tehran. Although crime rates in Tehran have been
statistically low on average, the rates do seem to be increasing.

6. Manila, Philippines (54.86/100)

Manila is capital of the Philippines. It also holds the designation of being the most densely
populated city in the entire world. Within the Safe Cities Index, Manila scored 36.61 in digital
security, 60.12 in health security, 52.89 in infrastructure security, and 69.85 in personal security.
Crimes in Manila include things like robbery, kidnapping, loan sharking, and murdering. Violent
crime is not unheard of within the city.

5. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (54.33/100)

Ho Chi Minh City is Vietnam's largest city with a population of over eight million. It was
previously known as Saigon. Ho Chi Minh City scored 39.78 in digital security, 61.29 in health
security, 65.73 in infrastructure security, and 50.53 in personal security. Like many of the entries
on this list, petty crime and pickpocketing are of highest concern in Ho Chi Minh City, as violent
crime such as murder remains relatively rare.

4. Jakarta, Indonesia (53.39/100)

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Jakarta is Indonesia's largest city with a population of nearly ten million. Its scores were 36.60 in
digital security, 53.11 in health security, 63.32
in infrastructure security, and 59.24 in personal security. Although petty crime is the most
common type of criminal activity reported in Jakarta, more violent crimes are not completely
uncommon. A high rate of organized crime has also been cited in Jakarta. Internet fraud is also
suspected to be on the rise, which could explain the low ranking in digital security. Block M in
South Jakarta has been suggested as a hotbed for crime within Indonesia, as well as the Ancol
Port in north Jakarta.

3. Dhaka, Bangladesh (47.37/100)

Dhaka is both the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. Around 14 million people live there. Its
scores were 38.33 in digital security, 45.59 in health security, 38.42 in infrastructure security,
and 67.15 in personal security. All of these factors culminated in a low score of 47.37 out of 100,
which gives Dhaka the third spot on the list of Asia's most dangerous cities. Due to Bangladesh's
geographic location, the country is often used as a thoroughfare for drug trafficking.

2. Yangon, Myanmar (46.47/100)

Yangon is the capital city of Myanmar, or Burma. Its score can be broken down by 39.07 in
digital security, 45.79 in health security, 48.58 in infrastructure security, and 52.43 in personal
security. By these measures, Yangon is the second most dangerous city in all of Asia. Although
problems such as drug trafficking are certainly apparent in Myanmar, it is important to note that
Yangon's inclusion on this list is relatively recent. The largest drop in rankings that were
experienced in Yangon was the drop in digital security.

1. Karachi, Pakistan (38.77/100)

Karachi, Pakistan, ranks the lowest on the Safe Cities Index, making it the most dangerous city
in Asia. It scored 43.22 in digital security, 39.92 in health security, 40.11 in infrastructure
security, and 31.85 in personal security. The low ranking in personal security is most staggering
for this city that counts over 20 million residents in its surrounding area. In Karachi, many report
feeling unsafe walking alone, even during daylight. Instances of violent crime remains high, and
things like carjackings are not uncommon. To worsen problems, corruption and bribery also runs
rampant in the city, a situation that only seems to be worsening.
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RUSSIA
MURDER
In 2016, the murder rate in Russia was 7 per 100,000 people, according to Rosstat (the Russian
Federal State Statistics Service). According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime (UNODC), the corresponding figure is a bit higher at 9.2.[2] Either way, it represents a
significant decrease over the previous 15 years (in 2001, the homicide rate was 30.5). In 2018,
according to Rosstat, there were 7,067 murders, and the homicide rate in Russia fell below the
United States for the first time in recent history, falling to 4.9 per 100,000 compared to the US
rate of 5.0 per 100,000 in 2018. This was a 25% decline from the 2017 rate of 6.1 per 100,000. In
2017, Moscow also recorded the lowest crime rate in over a decade.

Drug trafficking
Drug trafficking and illicit drug use is a significant problem in Russia. The disintegration of
the Soviet Union, the civil war in Afghanistan, the civil war in Tajikistan, and the conflicts in
the North Caucasus have made the favorable conditions for the development of illegal drug
trade. In the early 1990s, use of cocaine was increasingly noted among the young population of
the nation.
In the mid-1990s, the growing drug abuse that appeared in Russia was caused by lack of border
controls, and the country became one of the world's major transit corridors of drug
trafficking. The entrance of producers of cocaine of South America in the Russian market was
proved by intercepting cocaine shipments in Saint Petersburg in 1993. As of 1996 internal
production of narcotic substances was also rising in Russia.
Limited quantity of illicit cannabis is cultivated in the country. Opium poppies and marijuana are
cultivated illegally in the Southern Federal District. Russia is one of the two major drug
producers along with Morocco, and one of the five major drug trafficking entry points along
with Iran, Turkey, Italy and Spain in the Mediterranean region. The drug trafficking also
involves the supply of opium, heroin and marijuana from Central Asia and the Golden Crescent,
comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran.
Russian drug rings work with the Sicilian mafia and the Colombian drug traffickers to import
and distribute cocaine. Many local Russian distributors have connections with criminal
organizations in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Ukraine. According to the Moscow State
Institute of International Relations, a regular trafficking route exists from Tajikistan to Rostov-
on-Don via Turkmenistan, and from there to Western Europe.Below are some drug-trafficking
routes through the Russian Federation.
Human trafficking
Russia is a supply, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children
being trafficked for various purposes. The trafficking is multidimensional and it involves both
commercial sexual exploitation and labor exploitation. Russia is a significant source of women
trafficked to over 50 nations. Internal trafficking is a problem in the country; women are
trafficked from rural areas to urban settlements for commercial sexual exploitation. Men are
trafficked internally and from Central Asia for forced labor in the construction and agricultural
industries. Debt bondage is common among the trafficking victims.
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Arms trafficking
Arms trafficking has become a significant problem in the Russian Federation following the
disintegration of the Soviet Union. The former Eastern Bloc countries (including Russia) are the
source of the majority of illegal weapons in circulation around the world. Illegal arms possession
is a problem in many regions in the nation, especially in the areas suffering from insurgency such
as Chechnya and Dagestan.
Because of the general weakening of the government control and the decentralization of power in
the nation in the first half of the 1990s, small arms from several military units and arsenals made
their way into the hands of civilians and local unofficial armed formations. Gunrunning in Russia
stemmed from corruption in the armed forces and the illegal sale of military equipment. It has
been suggested that parts of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation and arms
industry were engaged in arms trafficking with the Chechen separatists.
Russian troops play an important role in arms trafficking especially in the war zones. Poor salary
for service persons coupled with lack of control over weapon storage resulted in troop
involvement in illegal arms trade. The Chief of the General Staff Anatoly Kvashnin publicly
stated in 2003 that increasing corruption left the Russian military in a "post-critical state".
There have been accusations and counter-accusations between Russia and Georgia regarding
illegal arms selling to Chechen separatists. Russia alleged that Chechen separatists received
weapons through illegal networks going to Chechnya through Georgia and Azerbaijan. On the
other hand, Georgia accused Russia of corruption on military bases, poor security infrastructure
and low professionalism among Russian troops as the reasons behind the spread of illegal
weapons.
Corruption
In Russia's criminal legislation, "corruption" is not defined as a specific crime, but a collective
term which include bribery, abuse of office and others.[57] It is accepted in both inside and
outside the country that corruption is widespread in Russia.[58] Corruption is often considered as
a major factor behind economic problems in the nation.[58] According to a survey conducted by
the Economist Intelligence Unit in 1997, the Commonwealth of Independent States was the most
corrupt region in the world, with Russia (along with the other four CIS countries surveyed)
received the maximum rating for corruption among public officials.
In the Corruption Perceptions Index 2007, Russia was ranked 143rd out of 179 countries for
corruption (least corrupt countries are at the top of the list). On a scale of 0 to 10 with 0 the most
corrupt and 10 the most transparent, Transparency International rated Russia 2.3. Corruption in
Russia is often divided into two broad categories: "petty" corruption, where low-ranking
government officials are engaged in bribery, and "high-level" corruption involving political and
business elite.
 6

JAPAN
Crimes
Of particular concern to the police are crimes associated with modernization. Increased wealth
and technological sophistication has brought new white collar crimes, such as computer
and credit card fraud, larceny involving coin dispensers, and insurance fraud. Incidence of drug
abuse is minuscule, compared with other industrialized nations and limited mainly to stimulants.
Japanese law enforcement authorities endeavor to control this problem by extensive coordination
with international investigative organizations and stringent punishment of Japanese and foreign
offenders. Traffic accidents and fatalities consume substantial law enforcement resources. There
is also evidence of foreign criminals travelling from overseas to take advantage of Japan's lax
security. In his autobiography Undesirables, British criminal Colin Blaney stated that English
thieves have targeted the nation due to the low crime rate and because Japanese people are
unprepared for crime.Pakistani, Russian, Sri Lankan, and Burmese car theft gangs have also been
known to target the nation.

Human Trafficking
According to the United States' State Department, Japan is a major destination, source, and
transit country for men and women subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking. Victims of
human trafficking include male and female migrant workers, women and children lured
to Japan by fraudulent marriages and forced into prostitution, as well as Japanese nationals,
"particularly runaway teenage girls and foreign-born children of Japanese citizens who acquired
nationality." According to the 2014 U.S. State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report, "The
Government of Japan does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of
trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so."[4]
U.S. State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons placed the country
in "Tier 2" in 2017.[5] Japan ratified the 2000 UN TIP Protocol on July 11, 2017.[6]
In 2005 Irene Khan, then the Secretary General of Amnesty International, stated that the country
was the biggest receiving country for human trafficking and there were a lot of people being
trafficked from Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, South America, to Japan.

VIETNAM
Vietnam has a relatively low crime rate and Vietnamese are generally a very law-abiding people.
Violent crime is uncommon but petty crime occurs. There is some theft in the big cities. There is
also some banditry, illegal drug activity and insurgent activity in some areas in the countryside.
Foreigners are generally not victimized by violent crime. If they are and the criminals are caught
they are dealt with harshly. Police and other authorities generally do not hassle foreigners to
much or shake them down for bribes.
The crime rate in Vietnam is among the lowest in Southeast Asia which itself is known for
having a low crime rate. Prostitution and drug abuse are common in Vietnam. Thieves are active
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in Ho Chi Minh City. Tourists and foreigners are generally not affected by crime in Vietnam.
The punishments for criminals that involve or target foreigners can be quite severe.
According to the U.S. State Department Bureau of Diplomatic Security: "Although most
travelers in Vietnam feel relatively safe, pick-pocketing and petty crimes occur. Violent crimes
such as armed robbery, kidnappings, and murder against westerners or tourists remain rare. Drug
use, which contributes significantly to the crime rate, is an increasing problem in Vietnam,
particularly the increasing use of methamphetamine and intravenous drugs. Petty theft, purse
snatching, and pick pocketing are most common in the areas frequented by foreigners such as
major hotels, tourist sites, airports, and public parks. One common method of purse snatching
used throughout Vietnam employs two people on a motorcycle with the passenger snatching the
victim’s bag, camera, cellular phone, etc., often while traveling at the same speed or faster than
street traffic. This method can be especially dangerous to victims if the straps of the bag are over
the shoulder or around the neck, as the victim can be pulled down or dragged by the strap until it
breaks. This is an ongoing and often dangerous trend. In some cases, a knife or other sharp
cutting instrument is used by the perpetrators to cut the strap or to make a hole to reach in and
steal valuables.

AUSTRALIA
Crime in Australia is managed by various law enforcement bodies (federal and state-based
police forces and local councils), the federal and state-based criminal justice systems and state-
based correctional services.
The Department of Home Affairs oversees federal law enforcement, national
security (including cyber security, transport security, criminal justice, emergency
management, multicultural affairs, immigration and border-related functions). It comprises
the Australian Federal Police, Australian Border Force, the Australian Security Intelligence
Organisation, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, the Australian Transaction
Reports and Analysis Centre and the Australian Institute of Criminology as of February
2019.[1] Each state and territory runs its own police service.
Crime statistics are collected on a state basis and then collated and further analysed by
the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Between 2008–09 and 2017–18 the national victimisation
rate decreased for personal crime in all categories except sexual assault (which remained steady),
and also all household crimes selected in the national statistics. Approximately 5.0% (966,600)
of Australians aged 15 years and over experienced personal crime.
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EUROPE
An enlarged European Union not only means more territory and a greater population, but also
more crimes and perpetrators of crimes. The European integration brings a new challenge to
criminology. Comparison of crime statistics across countries is still one of the most difficult
methodological problems in criminological analyses. Countries differ in respect of their penal
systems and penal policies. Reporting and statistical systems are also different. How, then, can
one compare crime between European countries? Can one say where it is safer or where the
police work better? Can one determine what the manner of data collection should be so that it
reflects reality accurately? This article concentrates on a representation of some trends of crime
in Central and Eastern European countries.

10. Brussels, Belgium (2.8 homicides per 100,000 people)

Brussels is the largest city in Belgium, a country in Western Europe. It is also the capital of the
European Union (EU). In 2010, there were 31 murders in Brussels, a number that appears to be
average for the city with the year 2008 being a slight exception when 44 homicides were
reported. In 2001, Brussels was the fourth most crime-ridden city in Europe, although this
number also took into account other crimes such as burglary and assault.

9. Zurich, Switzerland (3.0 homicides per 100,000 people)

Zurich is the largest city in the central European nation of Switzerland. In 2010, there were 11
homicides reported in the city, which creates a murder rate of 3.0 when the city's low population
of less than half a million is taken into consideration. 2010, however, does appear to be
somewhat of an anomaly for this Swiss urban area, as both the years 2009 and 2011 saw only 4
and 1 murders, respectively.

8. Kiev, Ukraine (3.2 homicides per 100,000 people)

Kiev is the largest city and capital of the Eastern European country of Ukraine. In 2010, 118 of
Kiev's residents were victims of homicide, creating a murder rate of 3.2 This appears to be a
number that is a somewhat annual average for Kiev, where murder rates seem to hover around
100 per year. The public transit system, including suburban trains, have been singled out as
potential hotbeds for violent crime in Kiev due to their tendency to be overcrowded.

7. Riga, Latvia (3.3 homicides per 100,000 people)

Riga is the largest city in Latvia, a country located in the Baltic states. In 2010, there were 23
murders in the city, resulting in a homicide rate of 3.3. Although the historic city is known to be
relatively safe, public parks and the heavily-touristed Old Town are known to be areas where
crime is more likely to occur. Much of this may be a petty crime such as pickpocketing.
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6. Belfast, Northern Ireland (3.3 homicides per 100,000 people)

Belfast is the largest city in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. In 2010,
Belfast reported a homicide rate of 3.3, which was calculated from nine murders, given Belfast's
relatively small population of around 286,000. This crime rate, however, is part of a trend that
shows a decreasing rate of homicide in Northern Ireland. During "the Troubles" of the 1970s and
80s, the crime rate in Northern Ireland was closer to 31 per 100,000, which is similar to the
homicide rate that could be found in Colombia or South Africa during the early 2010s.

5. Podgorica, Montenegro (3.5 homicides per 100,000 people)

Podgorica is the largest city of Montenegro. Italso serves as the nation's capital. Between 1946
and 1992, when Montenegro was part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
(Yugoslavia), the city was known as Titograd. In 2010, there were 7 deaths by homicide
recorded in Podgorica. Homicide rates in the city usually remain around this number. However,
the year 2006 did see a rise in homicides, with 12 in the year bringing the homicide rate of the
time up to 6.5 per 100,000 residents.

4. Moscow, Russia (4.2 homicides per 100,000 people

Moscow is the capital of Russia and the largest city in the European continent with 12.2 million
inhabitants. It is a major cultural center of Europe and is located on the Moskva River. In 2010,
there were 483 homicides reported in Moscow. This figure was a decrease from numbers seen in
2005, 2006 and 2007, when 766, 767, and 629 murders were reported respectively. This decrease
in reported murders may be a sign that violent crime in Moscow is decreasing as a whole,
although other crime such as car theft remains a problem in this major city.

3. Vilnius, Lithuania (4.7 homicides per 100,000 people)

Vilnius is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, which is located in the Baltic states. In 2010,
26 crimes were reported in the city, producing a crime rate of 4.7 per 100,000 inhabitants. This
number was, however, a decrease from the crime rates experience before 2010, which reached a
high in 2008 when 58 homicides were recorded resulting in a rate of 10.4 per 100,000 residents.
Despite these numbers of homicides that appear relatively high for Europe, visitors are still much
more likely to encounter petty crime such as pickpocketing and credit card theft.

2. Glasgow, Scotland (5.1 homicides per 100,000 people)

Glasgow is the largest city of Scotland, located in the United Kingdom. In 2010, the homicide
rate of Glasgow was 5.1 per 100,000 residents, calculated from a total of 30 murders that were
experienced in the city that year. 30 is a number that appears to be average for the number of
violent deaths in Glasgow every year, a number that may be due to organized gangs and turf
wars.
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1. Tallinn, Estonia (5.5 homicides per 100,000 people)

Tallinn is a city in Estonia, situated on the northern coast of the country. With a relatively small
population of 443,894, the city experienced 22 homicides in 2010, bringing its rate to 5.5 per
100,000. This rate sits lower than the murder rate of Estonia that was calculated between 1999
and 2001. It was as a high of 9.4 per 100,000 people. The general trend appears to be that the
homicide rate in Tallinn is decreasing, as 40 murders were reported in 2005, standing in contrast
to 2010. However, Tallinn's small population size, relatively large amount of murders per capita,
and position on a continent where violent crime is highly uncommon gives it a place at the top of
this list.