Venezuela: Murder's On The Rise In Hugo's Socialist Paradise

Keep in mind that the population of Venezueal is about 28 million people.

The number of homicides in Venezuela rose last year to 16,047, compared with 14,589 in 2008, according to a report by the Venezuelan Observatory of Violence, or OW, which names impunity and corruption as the chief causes.

The document entitled “A Decade of Impunity in Venezuela (1998-2009),” sent to Efe on Monday, shows a total of 123,091 homicides during that period and statistics that reflect a constant rise since the 4,550 murders reported in 1998.

Police corruption is at the heart of the problem, and like with all dictators, they also cite the lack of needed gun controls.

Impunity, according to the report, is the chief cause of the growing number of homicides since 1998, and says that even as the number of homicides increased, the number of arrests declined.

In contrast, in the USA with a population of over 300 million, the yearly murder rate is about 16,000, with most deaths associated with the drug trade or illegal immigration.