Fewer murders in NL last year, more young victims

A total of 121 people in the Netherlands were killed by violence last year, 77 men and 44 women. That is four fewer than in 2019. Though the number of young victims of murder or manslaughter under the age of 20 increased from 10 to 18, Statistics Netherlands reported on Monday.

According to the stats office, the increase in young victims is only visible among boys. In the past five years, 35 young people between the ages of 10 and 20 years were killed by violence. 14 percent of them were killed by a parent, and 37 percent by a friend or acquaintance. 

The number of murders and manslaughter cases in the Netherlands has been gradually decreasing for years. Between 2000 and 2004, an average of 236 people were killed in the country per year. Since 2015, that number has been an average of 125 victims per year.

Of all the murders and manslaughter cases in the Netherlands last year, a quarter were committed in the three largest cities - 12 in Amsterdam, 10 in Rotterdam, and 7 in The Hague. The number of killings in Amsterdam was 5 lower than in 2019, and in The Hague there were 7 fewer victims. 

Between 2016 and 2020, 2 out of every 100 thousand Amsterdam residents were victims of murder or manslaughter, almost three times higher than the national average of 0.7 per 100 thousand residents. In Rotterdam and The Hague, there were 1.7 and 1.6 victims per 100 thousand residents respectively.

In this same period, women were most often killed by their partner or ex, in 56 percent of cases. Male victims were most often killed by a friend or acquaintance (29.8 percent).

Last year, nearly 600 people were convicted of murder, manslaughter or attempts thereto. Over 95 percent of perpetrators were male. Three quarters were between the ages of 18 and 45 years, and almost 10 percent were minors.