Cambodian Crime? What Crime?

Three thousand, four hundred and sixty. That's the number that Cambodian police bosses put on crimes committed for 2009.

Three thousand, four hundred and sixty crimes, for a country of 14 million people steeped in poverty? That's ridiculous; if such a figure was correct it would mean that there were days when some provinces experienced no crime at all.

The three thousand, four hundred and sixty is of course the number of crimes reported to the police. And the vast majority of crime victims, serious or otherwise, simply do not bother to involve the police.

Can't say I blame them. Why call the police when they won't help unless there is something in it for them? Why call the police when the criminal can buy himself out of jail time. And why have the police snooping around your home when they are often a source of great fear for many Cambodians?

Nope, for most Cambodians it becomes a case of grinning and bearing it as best as one can. But three thousand, four hundred and sixty crimes in 2009? Don't believe it for one second!