On the morning of June 15, which is observed as Police Day each year, President Ma Ying-jeou attended the 2015 Police Day celebration at the National Police Agency (NPA) of the Ministry of the Interior. In remarks, the president spoke about actions taken by the government in recent years to fight crime, and the successes it has achieved. He also called on police throughout the nation to continue serving the people and working together to uphold law and order.
President Ma started the proceedings by personally conferring the 51st Model Police Awards and the 8th National Model Forensics Officer Awards to 36 recipients, after which he posed with them and their family members for photos. Then in remarks the president expressed gratitude to the nation's police for their work in maintaining law and order and serving the public. He also thanked the family members of police for their unsung contributions, noting that their understanding and support allows police personnel to devote themselves to public safety and crime prevention with full family support.
Commenting on the fact that crime rates have declined in recent years while the crime clearance rate has gone up, President Ma stated that public safety has improved greatly thanks to the tremendous efforts of the police. Over 490,000 offenses were known to the police in Taiwan in 2007, of which under 75% were cleared. But by 2014 the number of such offenses had fallen to roughly 300,000, and 86% of them were cleared. That means the number of offenses known to the police fell by 38% between 2007 and 2014, while the share of cases solved rose by almost 12 percentage points. Instances of violent crime fell by 76%, while larceny was reduced by 69%. In all categories, the occurrence of crime dropped way off, while the rate of successful case resolution rose sharply, which is gratifying.
President Ma mentioned that since the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement took effect on June 25, 2009, the NPA and the mainland's Ministry of Public Security have worked together to fight crime. As of the end of March this year, the government has worked via the Mutual Assistance Agreement to solve 99 major crimes and arrest over 6,000 suspects. Police on the two sides have also broken up many cross-border drug rings, thus successfully keeping drugs out of Taiwan.
The president pointed out that the Mutual Assistance Agreement has also led to a reduction in scam activity. Losses caused by scams, which peaked in 2006 at NT$18.6 billion, dropped to NT$3.3 billion in 2014. While there is still room for improvement, this is still an 80% reduction from 2006. In addition, the two sides have also used the Mutual Assistance Agreement to establish many cooperation mechanisms and strike an effective blow against cross-border crime.
Commenting on law and order and traffic safety in Taiwan, President Ma noted that while the population has increased by more than 2 million over the past 20 years, statistics from last year show that the number of crimes has not increased, and in fact has gone down by about 30%. In particular, violent crime and larceny have fallen by 86% and 77%, respectively. And while the number of motor vehicles has risen by more than 8 million over 20 years, traffic accidents and drunk driving fatalities have respectively fallen by more than 40% over the same period, in both cases to historic lows.
The president also remarked that the police enjoy strong public support, with 44% of respondents to a poll last year indicating satisfaction with the nationwide state of public safety, up by 18 percentage points from the 26% satisfaction rate in 2007. The satisfaction rate climbed to 75% when respondents were asked about the state of public safety in their own county or municipality, and to 88% when asked about their own neighborhood. In addition, in July 2014 the US-based website Lifestyle9 picked Taiwan as the second-safest country in the world, also making it one of the best places to settle in. And when the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei polled US citizens living in Taiwan, they found that law and order has always been one of the things that Americans like best about Taiwan. Such things show that the international community recognizes Taiwan's excellent public safety.
The president also mentioned that despite the excellent work being done by the police, there are still numerous threats to public safety. In late May this year, an eight-year-old girl was killed at her school in an incident that shocked and saddened the nation. The police and the government have a solemn responsibility to prevent the occurrence of crime and tragedies. After the school girl's killing, the NPA immediately mobilized large numbers of police to ensure school safety. Over 2,000 schools have conducted safety assessments since then, and many police officers have been dispatched to bolster security. The goal has been to identify omissions and oversights in school safety measures, and to correct shortcomings, so that children can attend school in a safe environment.
President Ma also specially commended Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞), a former director-general of the NPA and a recent recipient of the Order of Propitious Clouds with Green Grand Cordon, for his outstanding contributions to public safety in Taiwan. The president expressed hope that the former director-general's stellar career will inspire the nation's police to continue working hard to uphold law and order.