２０１１（Heisei 23）National Safety Campaign Announcement

Between January 1^st and August 31^st 2011 there were around 14,400 crimes committed in Mie Prefecture. This is around 1,200 crimes less than the same period last year. However, cases of burglary, bicycle and car theft have increased, and there has also been a rise in bank transfer scams – phone calls claiming to be from a son or government official who convinces victims to transfer money to false bank accounts. There were also numerous reports filed involving suspicious individuals calling out to or harassing women and children. These crimes which threaten the peaceful lives of the citizens in Mie Prefecture are happening on a daily basis.

On the basis of these figures, the police force has planned a campaign to increase regional safety and awareness of crime prevention for the residents of Mie Prefecture. In order to bring about a society in which everyone can live without fear, there will be a public awareness PR campaign for ten days as part of the National Safety Campaign, running from Tuesday 11^th October to Thursday 20^th of October; it will aim to prevent residents of the prefecture becoming victims of crime.

There will be five targets during the campaign:

○　Preventing theft of motorbikes and other car related crime

○  Preventing bank transfer scams

○　Preventing women and children becoming victims of crime

○  Preventing trespassing in residential areas

○　Preventing shoplifting, bicycle theft

Please take the opportunity to think about ‘crime prevention’ during the 2011 National Safety Campaign. It is important that everyone works together in order to protect their family and friends from becoming victims of crime and to bring about a region where it is difficult to commit an offense at all. Increasing awareness of protecting society’s rules and rebuilding the relationships between people in the community are both connected to crime control. Please take this chance to talk to your families, schools and offices about the prevention of crime.