Murder and attempt to murder: over 1,422 FIRs registered in 60 districts in December 2010

Over 1,422 First Information Reports (FIRs) of murder and attempt to murder have been registered in 60 districts during December 2010, that include 670 murder and 752 attempt to murder, Karachi remained at the top with 119 killings.
A total of 23,439 FIRs were registered with the police in 67 districts monitored by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN), reports FAFEN's monthly Pakistan Crime Monitor, in its first report on Tuesday.
FAFEN's Governance Monitors collected the figures of FIR registered under various crimes from offices of District Police Officers (DPOs) in 67 districts, 27 of Punjab, 20 of KP, 15 of Sindh, four districts of Balochistan and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
Approximately 15 percent of the FIRs registered by police in December 2010 were crimes related involving physical harm to persons, including murder, attempted murder, involuntary manslaughter (unintentional killing), hurt (injury), illegal confinement and terrorism-related incidents. If crimes against women are included in the category of crimes involving physical harm to persons, then this category represents 18 percent of all registered crimes.
About one-fourth (26 percent) of the total recorded cases were crimes pertaining to property, such as theft (including motor vehicle theft), extortion, criminal trespass, criminal misappropriation of property, robbery (theft or extortion involving harm to a person, including motor vehicle robbery), and dacoity (robbery involving conspiracy among five or more people).
Approximately 10 percent of the registered cases across the country were related to threat and fraud crimes, including acts of criminal intimidation, offences against public tranquillity, counterfeiting of currency notes, cheating, criminal breach of trust, and fraudulent deeds and dispossession of property.
Around three percent of the total recorded cases were of crimes against women, which included offences referred to as "honour killing," kidnapping, abducting or inducing a woman to compel her to marry, rape, assault or criminal force to a woman, offences relating to marriage, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman.
Almost half (46 percent) of the total 23,439 registered FIRs were regarding minor crimes categorised as 'other crimes' in the official record.
FAFEN Monitors received highest degree of co-operation in Punjab where 27 DPO offices shared the requested information. Approximately, 78 percent of the total registered crimes occurred in Punjab, 11 percent in Sindh and 10 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
Approximately 1 percent of crimes were registered in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) and 0.2 percent of crimes were registered in the monitored districts of Balochistan.
On an average, each monitored district in Punjab registered 681 crimes during the reporting month against 173, 113 and 12 crimes in each district of Sindh, KP and Balochistan, respectively.
Factors relevant to the high rate of registration of crimes in Punjab include the high population density as well as willingness of citizens to go to the police to register crimes and police responsiveness to citizens and willingness to register FIRs.
The low rate of crime reporting in regions like Balochistan and KP does not necessarily represent a low crime rate, but may indicate that police officials do not record crimes brought to their attention, citizens do not bring cases to the police (potentially because of a trust deficit), and/or citizens' reliance on parallel (traditional or community-run) conflict resolution and justice systems, such as 'jirgas.'
Another factor related to low crime statistics from Balochistan is that police jurisdiction is restricted to 'A' areas, which are normally cities and suburbs, whereas Levies control 'B' areas in the countryside.
Punjab has a significantly higher rate of crime reporting compared with other regions. Almost three-fourths (73 percent) of the total crimes against women were reported in Punjab, 16 percent in Sindh, 10 percent in KP and 1 percent each in Balochistan and ICT.
With regard to crimes involving physical harm to persons, more than half (57 percent) were registered in Punjab, while 21 percent of physical harm crimes were registered in Sindh and in KP, 1 percent in ICT and 0.2 percent in Balochistan.
Similarly, more than four-fifths (84 percent of the total registered crimes regarding property were reported in Punjab, 12 percent in Sindh, 3 percent in KP, 1 percent in ICT and 0.1 percent in Balochistan. In threat and fraud cases, nearly 87 percent cases were reported in Punjab, followed by 10 percent in Sindh and 3 percent in KP. Only one such incident was reported to police in Balochistan, and none were reported in ICT.
Among the five cities with the highest rates of registered crimes, four of these cities are in Punjab province. The district of Lahore (Punjab) tops the list of five districts with the highest crime reporting rate compared to other monitored districts during the month of December 2010.
More than one-fifths (21 percent) of the total registered crimes across the country occurred in Lahore district.
The district of Faisalabad, the second largest metropolis of Punjab province, was second in terms of crime reporting, with 12 percent of the total registered crimes from 67 monitored districts. Karachi (Sindh) was ranked third with regard to crime reporting, with 6 percent of the total registered crimes during the observed month. The Punjab's districts of Sargodha and Multan were fourth and fifth in terms of registration of FIRs.
Karachi reported more cases of crimes ensuing physical harm to persons including murder and attempted murder, while Lahore registered more cases of crimes pertaining to property, threat and fraud crimes, and minor crimes. The highest number of crimes against women (91 crimes) was reported from the district of Faisalabad, but police officials in Karachi, Jhang, and ICT did not provide this information for comparison.
Murder and attempted murder along with hurt (injury) were the most widespread crimes reported from most districts. The majority of incidents of terrorism (64 percent) were reported in four districts of KP, but Jhang and ICT police officials did not provide comparative data.