Countering Conventional Crime and Increasing the Trust in Police Authorities
December 15, 2021
The low trust of Bulgarian citizens in the police has a direct impact on the level of reporting of incidents by victims of crime. At the same time, low levels of reporting pose a systemic problem, as they hamper effective investigation and justice, which increases the risk of an increase in conventional crime.
On 15 December 2021 the Center for the Study of Democracy presented a report with recommendations on “Conventional crime and trust in police”. The event was attended by the Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Chief Comm. Stoyan Temelakiev, Director of the General Directorate of the National Police, Chief Comm. Stanimir Stanev, and the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Bulgaria Mr. Ivan Geshev.
According to experts from the Center, the main challenges for institutions regarding the registration of crimes are related to the lack of feedback on the investigation, lack of accountability and transparency of local structures of the Ministry of Interior and insufficient measures to encourage citizens to report crimes.
The presentation focused on the proposals of the Center’s experts related to improving the security environment and inter-institutional cooperation, mechanisms for crime prevention and achieving a positive change in citizens’ attitudes.
Conventional Crime and Perception of Insecurity in Rural Areas: Troyan and the Region
October 27, 2021
During the course of October 2021, the Center for the Study of Democracy will hold a series of four public events on “Conventional crime and public trust in the work of police” with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Interior, local governments in different regions of the country and civil society organizations working in the field of protection of the rights of victims of crime.
The forth and final of these events was held on October 27, 2021, under the title “Conventional Crime and Perception of Insecurity in Rural Areas: Troyan and the Region” and aimed to examine the criminogenic situation in the municipality. Among the issues discussed during the discussion were the significant differences in citizens’ perceptions of security and levels of crime registered by police, as well as the reasons for the low level of trust in the work of the responsible institutions. The recommendations of the experts from the Center related to the improvement of the security environment in the metropolitan areas, enhancing the inter-institutional cooperation and the introduction of innovative mechanisms for crime prevention, ultimately achieving a positive change in citizens’ attitudes.
Conventional Crime and Perception of Insecurity in Rural Areas: Peshtera and the Region
October 20, 2021
During the course of October 2021, the Center for the Study of Democracy will hold a series of four public events on “Conventional crime and public trust in the work of police” with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Interior, local governments in different regions of the country and civil society organizations working in the field of protection of the rights of victims of crime.
The third of these events was held on October 20, 2021, under the title “Conventional Crime and Perception of Insecurity in Rural Areas: Peshtera and the Region” and aimed to examine the criminogenic situation in the municipality. Among the issues discussed during the discussion were the significant differences in citizens’ perceptions of security and levels of crime registered by police, as well as the reasons for the low level of trust in the work of the responsible institutions. The recommendations of the experts from the Center related to the improvement of the security environment in the metropolitan areas, enhancing the inter-institutional cooperation and the introduction of innovative mechanisms for crime prevention, ultimately achieving a positive change in citizens’ attitudes.
Can Burgas become a safer city
October 13, 2021
During the course of October 2021, the Center for the Study of Democracy will hold a series of four public events on “Conventional crime and public trust in the work of police” with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Interior, local governments in different regions of the country and civil society organizations working in the field of protection of the rights of victims of crime.
The second of these events was held on October 13, 2021, under the title “Can Burgas become a safer city?” and aimed to examine the criminogenic situation in the administrative center of the country’s region most visited by tourists. Among the issues discussed during the discussion were the significant differences in citizens’ perceptions of security and levels of crime registered by police, as well as the reasons for the low level of trust in the work of the responsible institutions. The recommendations of the experts from the Center related to the improvement of the security environment in the metropolitan areas, enhancing the inter-institutional cooperation and the introduction of innovative mechanisms for crime prevention, ultimately achieving a positive change in citizens’ attitudes.
Can Sofia become a safer city
October 6, 2021
During the course of October 2021, the Center for the Study of Democracy will hold a series of four public events on “Conventional crime and public trust in the work of police” with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Interior, local governments in different regions of the country and civil society organizations working in the field of protection of the rights of victims of crime.
The first of them, held on October 6, 2021, under the title “Can Sofia become a safer city?”, aimed to examine the criminogenic situation in the capital. Among the issues discussed during the discussion were the significant differences in citizens’ perceptions of security and levels of crime registered by police, as well as the reasons for the low level of trust in the work of the responsible institutions. The recommendations of the experts from the Center related to the improvement of the security environment in the metropolitan areas, enhancing the inter-institutional cooperation and the introduction of innovative mechanisms for crime prevention, ultimately achieving a positive change in citizens’ attitudes.
Crime Trends in Bulgaria 2010 – 2020
November 24, 2020
In 2001, the Center for the Study of Democracy developed and introduced the country’s first alternative tool for crime assessment, the National Crime Survey (NCS). Since then, the NCS has supported an in-depth analysis of trends and prevalence of crime in Bulgaria. The findings of the 2020 National Crime Survey, as well as recommendations for improving the performance of police and other institutions in registering crimes reported by crime victims were presented to civil society, media and independent experts in a webinar on 24 November 2020.
During the event, the trends in the most widespread categories of crimes for the past ten years were presented. These include crimes against property (vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles, burglaries, robberies, pickpocketing, etc.) and crimes against the person (homicides, assaults, threats, etc.). For the first time, the study in 2020 analysed the 112 National Emergency Service statistics, as well as the attitudes of citizens to use the 112 emergency number to report crimes and the profile of people that use it.
The 2020 NCS study shows that trust in police increased in 2019 but remained below the EU average. This lack of trust in law enforcement agencies is also evident from the high share of crime victims who did not report to the police. In order to tackle the low levels of trust and crime reporting, recommendations to law enforcement authorities were put forward in order to remedy this and increase transparency and accountability of the institution. The recommendations included measures such as improving communication between regional police departments and local communities and organization of regular information campaigns among citizens to promote the use the 112 emergency number to report crimes.