ABSTRACT
Crime is increasing in developed as well as in developing countries. This increase is sometimes denied in the developing countries, partly because criminal statistics and other sources of information are lacking or inaccurate, partly because poor or primitive conditions or serious political unrest make crime less significant, and partly owing to political propaganda. Occasionally we are told that improvement in material living conditions will take care, not only of the increase, but of crime itself. Unfortunately, in practice, the improvement is often seriously handicapped by the pursuance of political policies which absorb most of the existing financial resources. As for the theory that crime may be reduced or even eradicated by the improvement of material conditions, experience shows that Although this improvement may reduce some forms of crime, it creates others, sometimes more serious than those that previously existed. This does not mean that the improvement should be blamed, but simply that far more reforms than simply better living conditions are required before crime is reduced to what may be regarded as reasonable proportions.
