The crime rate has increased in the last two years despite efforts made by HCM City in fighting prostitution, drug-related crime and theft, city officials have said.
Dr Nguyen Huu Nguyen of the Southern Economic Studies Centre said the rate had risen in recent years because of rapid urbanisation and the economic recession.
Nguyen spoke at a workshop held on July 16 by the Institute for Development Studies in HCM City.
To illustrate the current problems the city was facing with controlling prostitution and drug selling, speakers at the workshop described problems faced by one district in the city, Binh Tan.
In the first six months of the year, police and other agencies in the district uncovered two prostitution rings operating with a total of seven prostitutes and four brokers.
Forty-three drug-related crimes in Binh Tan District also occurred during that period, an increase of four over the same period last year.
In all of HCM City, the number of crimes committed by people under 18 years old has also increased in the last three years, according to an annual report from the city police.
In 2011, the number of crimes committed by juveniles totalled 1,094, increasing to 1,223 last year.
Nearly 60 percent of those crimes were committed by people aged 16-18 and 32 percent by teenagers aged 14-16.
Eight percent of the crimes were committed by people under 14 years old.
Experts said that thieves had become more audacious, causing more worry to local residents.
Nguyen said the increasing population rate was contributing to a higher rate of prostitution, drug sales and crimes.
Prostitution, he said, was difficult to control, even with financial punishment and restrictive laws.
Many authorities are unaware of the fact that prostitution becomes more widespread with increasing urbanisation, according to Nguyen.
He said that one alternative to better manage prostitution would be to set up legal zones in the city for these businesses, as some other countries have done.
Nguyen said the police and social-evil prevention division in HCM City, as well as other agencies, should change their crime-prevention methods as the current ones were not working.
Other experts said that public affairs campaigns should also be created to educate students and families about the importance of ethical conduct and the consequences of crime.-VNA
Dr Nguyen Huu Nguyen of the Southern Economic Studies Centre said the rate had risen in recent years because of rapid urbanisation and the economic recession.
Nguyen spoke at a workshop held on July 16 by the Institute for Development Studies in HCM City.
To illustrate the current problems the city was facing with controlling prostitution and drug selling, speakers at the workshop described problems faced by one district in the city, Binh Tan.
In the first six months of the year, police and other agencies in the district uncovered two prostitution rings operating with a total of seven prostitutes and four brokers.
Forty-three drug-related crimes in Binh Tan District also occurred during that period, an increase of four over the same period last year.
In all of HCM City, the number of crimes committed by people under 18 years old has also increased in the last three years, according to an annual report from the city police.
In 2011, the number of crimes committed by juveniles totalled 1,094, increasing to 1,223 last year.
Nearly 60 percent of those crimes were committed by people aged 16-18 and 32 percent by teenagers aged 14-16.
Eight percent of the crimes were committed by people under 14 years old.
Experts said that thieves had become more audacious, causing more worry to local residents.
Nguyen said the increasing population rate was contributing to a higher rate of prostitution, drug sales and crimes.
Prostitution, he said, was difficult to control, even with financial punishment and restrictive laws.
Many authorities are unaware of the fact that prostitution becomes more widespread with increasing urbanisation, according to Nguyen.
He said that one alternative to better manage prostitution would be to set up legal zones in the city for these businesses, as some other countries have done.
Nguyen said the police and social-evil prevention division in HCM City, as well as other agencies, should change their crime-prevention methods as the current ones were not working.
Other experts said that public affairs campaigns should also be created to educate students and families about the importance of ethical conduct and the consequences of crime.-VNA
