Martinlaakso district, Vantaa. Photo: kulmalukko / Wikipedia Commons
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Vantaa, Jyväskylä and Tampere are currently the least safe cities in Finland based on the national police’s latest disturbance index, according to police data obtained by Yle.
The disturbance index is a weighted model used by Finnish police to rank public safety based on reports of homicides, assaults, sexual offences, vandalism, and attempts of these crimes occurring in public places. The index also considers the number of emergency responses in public areas, with figures adjusted for population size.
Vantaa maintained its position as the city with the highest level of reported disturbances for another consecutive year. Jyväskylä rose sharply in the ranking, moving from sixth to second place in the past 12 months. Tampere followed in third.
Helsinki was fourth in the latest statistics. Espoo, despite being a larger urban area, was rated safer than both Turku and Pori. Oulu, which placed second last year following a series of violent incidents against immigrants, dropped to seventh place.
Yle reported that while the index highlights concentrations of violence, police officials say many of the incidents involve individuals already known to law enforcement. According to authorities, the index does not necessarily reflect risks to the general population.
Espoo, which is Finland’s second-largest city by population, reported a lower number of public disturbances than its peers. While still experiencing routine criminal activity, police did not report a sharp increase in serious violent crimes in public spaces.
The police disturbance index includes only events that occur in public areas and does not measure domestic violence or crimes committed in private residences. The rankings are based on reported incidents and emergency call data filed with law enforcement agencies.
Despite the figures from individual cities, Finland remains one of the safest countries in Europe, according to international rankings from the World Population Review. These broader rankings consider both violent and non-violent crime, social stability, and access to justice.
The police data compiled by Yle focused on Finland’s ten largest cities. Turku, Lahti, and Kuopio appeared in the middle range of the list. Oulu’s drop to seventh place was linked to a decrease in reports of targeted violence seen in previous years.
Pori, which had not featured prominently in earlier statistics, showed a slight increase in public disturbances but still ranked below the national average.
Yle obtained the figures directly from the Finnish police, which updates the disturbance index annually based on local and national reports. The index does not include unreported crime or events under ongoing investigation.
Police continue to stress that although the disturbance index identifies trends, local context matters and figures must be interpreted with caution.
HT
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Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
