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REGINA — Regina had the highest violent crime victimization rate among metropolitan centres in a recent survey, while Saskatchewan was second only to Manitoba on a provincial basis, according to a new report from Statistics Canada.
The 2009 General Social Survey — which measures how many Canadians aged 15 and older reported being a victim of crime in the 12 months prior — found that self-reported rates of both violent and household crimes are generally highest in the Western provinces.
The average violent victimization rate — which includes physical and sexual assault and robbery — was 118 per 1,000 population. In Saskatchewan, the figure was 159.
Among census metropolitan areas for which data was available, Regina respondents reported the highest rate of violent victimization, at close to double the rate of other centres. Saskatoon's rate was not included because the data was deemed too unreliable.
Regina also had one of the highest rates of household victimization, which includes incidents such as break-and-enters and thefts of vehicles or household property.
The federal agency noted that younger Canadians reported higher rates of violent victimization, while rates of victimization were also higher among certain groups.
"For example, individuals who identified themselves as Aboriginal were twice as likely as the non-Aboriginal population to report being a victim of a violent offence," Statistics Canada said.
Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice senior policy analyst David Gullickson said that, despite the latest numbers, there are some encouraging signs for the province. Notably, the crime severity index — a measure of police-reported crime — has been dropping here over the past five years.
"This suggests that our initiatives are working and we're headed in the right direction. All the same, as this study shows ... there's much more to do," Gullickson said.
Violent crime rates are "stubbornly high. We've got some real challenges and we need to be transparent about that," he said.
In mandate letters handed out earlier this year, the provincial ministers of justice and corrections, public safety and policing were tasked with pursuing a violent crime reduction strategy.
The government is also looking at ways to "expand and enhance" programs and services for victims of crime, Gullickson said.
Regina City Police spokeswoman Elizabeth Popowich said the victimization numbers don't paint an entirely new picture for city police but are still useful in helping the force "ask better questions, look at areas where we may direct resources."
"Really the numbers, and the recognition of the work that we have to do, and the fact that those statistics represent real people, are things that we deal with every day," Popowich said.
The survey found that, overall, 27 per cent of Canadians said they had been a victim of a criminal incident in the last 12 months, a proportion unchanged from the last survey in 2004.
Violent incidents accounted for 30 per cent of the self-reported incidents.
But the amount of victimizations that were forward to police agencies was down in 2009. Only 31 per cent of crime victims said they took their cases to police, a drop from 34 per cent in 2004.
Meanwhile, the vast majority of respondents still said they felt somewhat or very satisfied with their personal safety from crime.
ahall@leaderpost.com
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