25 May 1984

Meeting 21

Crime prevention and criminal justice in the context of development

The Economic and Social Council,

Having considered the report of the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control in respect of crime trends, operations of criminal justice systems and crime prevention strategies in the context of social and economic change, and with respect to the different facets of development,

Emphasizing the progress made towards the provision of assistance to Member States in improving national crime-related statistics, the establishment of a United Nations crime-related data base, and the long-term nature of such programmes of work,

1. Takes note with appreciation, of the reports of the Secretary-General on the relationship between crime and specific socio-economic issues and on crime trends and crime prevention strategies;

2. Recommends the Seventh United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders to give detailed consideration both to the further development of such studies, including specific questions such as the relationship between criminality and particular socio-economic factors, for example, the transmission of social values and changes in family functions, and to concrete problems of crime and criminal justice data, in the light of the Second United Nations Survey of Crime Trends, Operations of Criminal Justice Systems and Crime Prevention Strategies, and the proposed manual on the collection and analysis of crime statistics;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to submit a report on crime prevention and criminal justice in relation to socio-economic change and development to the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control at its ninth session;

4. Also requests the Secretary-General to maintain and develop the United Nations crime-related data base by continuing to conduct quinquennial surveys of crime trends, operations of criminal justice systems and crime prevention strategies, and to report periodically to the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control on the progress made;

5. Further requests the Secretary-General to develop concrete projects of technical co-operation for assistance in the collection and analysis of criminal justice data to Member States requesting such assistance.