Colombia’s statistics agency DANE published the results of a survey on victimization that was not consistent with other surveys and left more questions than answers.
Most notably, the DANE found that 71.3% of citizens do not report crimes to the authorities.
But when inquiring about the reasons of this staggeringly high number, the statistics agency published only two specific answers, filing the rest under “other.”
Victimization rates that make no sense
According to the DANE, 15.6% of Colombians were the victim of a crime last year.
Curiously, the DANE’s urban victimization rates are considerably lower than those reported by municipalities.
Particularly Medellin stood out. According to DANE, 8.6% of the residents of the country’s second largest city said they were the victim of a crime last year. According to the municipal survey Medellin Como Vamos, however, 15% were said to have been the victim of a crime.
Also in Cali and Bogota, the DANE’s statistics on victimization were significantly lower than those measured by the municipal governments.
What both the DANE and the municipal surveys coincide in is that Bogota has the highest victimization rate.
Urban victimization rates
Source: DANE
Ironically, the results of the DANE survey were ignored by the media, except in Medellin where local public television network Telemedellin reported that their city was “a reference in strategies against crime.”
The local TV station is infamous for its nonsensical government propaganda and did not mention the DANE survey’s major discrepancy with local victimization rates.
How Medellin relentlessly deceives its people about deteriorating security
Answers that raise questions
One particular answer that would raise a few questions about the survey and the authorities was that 52.5% of Colombians who are said to have been victim of extortion “considered it was unnecessary” to report the crime.
Another 24.4% answered that “the authorities don’t do anything, have no confidence in the administration of justice.”
The remaining 23.1% answered “other,” which was also the answer of 31.4% of burglary victims.
Also in the case of cattle theft, 43.7% of the victims allegedly considered calling the authorities “unnecessary.”
Reasons not to report a crime
Source: DANE
Telemedellin reported that the victimization rate had gone up in all cities, except in the “city of eternal spring.” The DANE survey omitted this information.