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benefits. In general, however, antisocial behavior in Sweden, with the exception of suicides, remains within the relatively low parameters that characterize Western Europe.
The traditionally very low crime rate first increased sharply following World War II. In 1944 the prison population numbered some 2,000; on January 1959 it totaled 4,470 and on 1 January 1969, 5,530. The ratio of about 69 prisoners per 100,000 population in the latter 1960's was nearly twice the in Norway and Denmark. After a continued rise through the 1950's and early 1960's, there is evidence that the incidence of crime or antisocial behavior then started to level off. Between 1961 and 1970 the number of persons of all ages admitted annually to prison rose from 10,767 to 11,647, an increase of 8% during the period in which the population increased by 7%. The age group 21 to 24 registered the greatest increase (42%), followed by the group 18 to 20 years (24%). Of those persons imprisoned each year, slightly over 90% receive sentences of less than a year, and over 50% receive sentences ranging from a few days to 3 months. Thus, the proportion of serious crimes or felonies committed remains very small. Larceny, burglary, and robbery make up about three-fourths of all offenses against the penal code.
As elsewhere in Europe, the relative number of crimes of violence is markedly lower than in the United States. Although it is difficult to compare directly the crime rate between countries because of great differences in reporting practices, such differences narrow sufficiently in the case of homicides to afford from validity in comparative statistics. Even here, however, internal inconsistencies limit ability to compare precisely. Both official Swedish and U.N. statistics state that in 1968, 0.7 persons per 100,000 population, in Sweden "died" of homicide. Yet the official figure citing "convictions" for homicide was 0.8 per 100,000, and that for "offenses of homicide known to police" was 2.8 per 100,000. The preliminary figures for 1970 were very close, with 0.7 persons per 100,000 again "dying" of homicide and 2.2 per 100,000 such "offenses known to police." In the United States, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, there were 7.7 cases of homicide per 100,000 population known to the police. Whatever the precise frame of comparison, it is clear that the incidence of homicide in the United States is at least nearly four times that in Sweden and may be as high as 11 times. Available evidence suggests that the incidence of forcible rape is significantly higher in the United States than in Europe. But here the rate in Sweden is somewhat on the higher side for Western Europe, a fact that may stem in part from greater precision in reporting. In Sweden in 1970 there were 8.2 incidents of rape per 100,000 population known to police as compared to a rate of 18.1 per 100,000 in the United States.
Sexual promiscuity, car theft, drunkenness, and narcotics use are the most common offenses among juveniles. Well over 50% of the girls in reformatory schools are guilty of loose sexual relations. Of the total number of boys in these schools in the mid 1960's, over 50% were convicted of car theft as compared with 35% at the start of the decade. During the same period both sexes showed a rising addiction to alcohol—in the case of boys, from 20% to 35% of the total; in the case of girls, from 24% to 38%. Concomitant with this trend, there has been a growing use of narcotics among young adults.
The consumption of intoxicating beverages throughout Sweden is high in terms of pure alcohol, averaging seven and one half quarts annually per inhabitant 15 years of age or older in 1969. For many years the national and local governments have sought to combat alcoholism and to limit its injurious efforts on the individual and on society. Penalties of imprisonment and loss of driving license are provided by law and strictly enforced against those persons driving automobiles while under the influence of liquor. Numerous temperance committees throughout the country are appointed by the local authorities and are often affiliated with church groups. Among other duties, they investigate alcoholics, provide them with guidance, and, if necessary, place them in public institutions for rehabilitation. There is tentative evidence that these official actions may be having an effect. In 1968 there were 64,372 convictions for drunkenness (62,477 for men and 1,895 for women), down 13% from 1967, 15% from 1966, and 20% from 1965—a 4-year period in which the population increased by about 3.2%. The rate of convictions for drunkenness was highest in the age group 18 to 24.
F. Health
Two sensitive indicators of physical well-being attest to the excellent public health conditions in Sweden. With the lowest infant mortality and the highest life expectancy rates in the world, the Swedes have set standards for public health which serve as models in the rest of Europe and in North America. Contributing to the general national awareness of health requirements and their effective implementation are such factors as universal literacy, cultural and racial homogeneity, a northern temperate climate,
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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200090021-3
