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What’s crime like in the Philippines?
vikramasia
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What’s crime like in the Philippines?
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On the low-level and petty side on one end and the… really, really, Guinness-level recordbreakers on the other. Most ordinary, everyday crime in the Philippines is of the petty kind. People snatching stuff away or pickpockets, what we call “laslas bag/pantalon” (your bag or pants get cut to gain easy access to valuables). Holdups, sure. I often tell people to avoid a certain area of Cubao in Quezon City because it’s a hotbed of highwaymen, haha. There’s “akyat bahay”, or people who jump your fence and go up your house (hence the name: “akyat” = ascend/go up (to); “bahay” = house) to steal your valuables. Breaking of car windows is also common, especially if you stupidly leave valuable items in your vehicle. Rape, yes, we have that, too, sometimes compounded with another crime. You also have disturbing the peace, especially by neighbors so drunk they forget themselves. Spouse abuse and Child abuse, too, common because of our culture’s view of women and children. On the other end of the scale, you have politicians and a bureaucracy responsible for the loss due to graft and corruption of 30 Centavos for every Peso spent by Government. And those were the figures when I was still with Gov more than six years ago. Some of these politicians have private armies, too, and act as virtual lords in their regions so that anything and everything goes for them. Basically, almost the same as with most modern countries not having a civil war, invasion, famine or plague going on
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I’m not a law-enforcement expert but these are the types of crimes I see in the news in the Philippines: Petty theft: pickpockets (“pandurukot”), slashing bags and pockets (“laslas bag” or “lastlas bulsa”). Snatching bags, electronic gadgets, or jewelry. Armed mugging or intimidation (“kikil” or “holdup”). Team armed robbery of passengers on jeeps or buses. Holdup of bank ATM holders (forcing them to withdraw their bank deposits).Swindling and confidence theft (“salisi,” “panlilinlang,” or “panloloko”), “qualified theft” (theft by a trusted employee or associate), panhandling and begging.Impersonation of a government official, law-enforcement official, military personnel, certified professionals, celebrities, etc., for personal gain. Acts resulting to defamation, libel, slander, or false testimony against another person or institution.Violent confrontations and gang warfare (“rumbles”): this may happen between family groups, clans or gangs, sports teams, ethnic tribes. Crimes of passion and domestic violence among neighbors, co-habitants, family members, friends, relatives, and in-laws.Rape and various “acts of lasciviousness” against women, male homosexuals, and/or children. Abuse and maltreatment of subordinates, women, children, pets, and livestock.Substance abuse and intoxication in a persistent or habitual manner leading to anti-social or violent behavior. Uncontrollable or unstable behavior possibly caused by disease or mental disorders.Illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, explosive devices, and other dangerous equipment or substances without government authorization.Vandalism, arson, bombing, willful destruction of property and valuables.Crimes against property: Breaking car or truck windows to steal the vehicle’s contents. Breaking and entering private houses (“akyat-bahay”) or business establishments to steal petty cash or valuables and supplies.Car and auto theft (often called “carnapping” in the Taglish vernacular). If the vehicle is dismantled and its parts sold separately, it is called “chop-chop.” Illegal checkpoint by fake law-enforcers so they could stop a targeted vehicle (such as a delivery van) and drive it off to be plundered elsewhere. Attacks on armored cars known to be carrying large amounts of cash and valuables.Racketeering and organized crime in the form of illegal gambling, car and property theft, selling of illegal drugs, kidnapping for ransom, armed robbery, blackmailing, illegal wiretapping, extortion and “illegal taxation,” mass murder, terrorism.Homicide and/or murder with or without conspiracy and collaboration by other individuals or groups. Use of a firearm or other weapon to cause death or harm to an individual or group. Assassination with the use of pairs of armed men “riding in tandem” on one or more motorcycles and wearing helmets to prevent recognition by witnesses. Use of grenades or IEDs (improvised explosive devices) to harm, kill, terrorize, and/or intimidate the general public either to divert public attention or to advance a political agenda.Corruption for personal profit or aggrandizement by persons with legal authority (journalists, accountants, lawyers, clergy, government bureaucrats, law enforcement officers, military officers, elected officials, prosecutors, judges); connivance by law enforcement and government officials in the enactment of continuing crimes by crime syndicates or armed political groups.Insurgency and rebellion leading to organized warfare and terrorism.This list is not exhaustive. A lawyer or a law-enforcement specialist would be able to provide more information from the Philippine Civil Code and police crime statistics and reports.