The sharp rise in the number of robbery cases has reached a level that has never been seen in Japan except for the chaotic period immediately after the war, and despite exhausting efforts by the investigating authorities, the clearance cannot keep up with a high pace of the occurrence of robbery cases.
  Under such circumstances of the time, there seems to be a change in the public awareness from "we are given community safety as a natural benefit" in the age of peaceful situation to "we have to acquire community safety with our efforts and expenses."
  The police currently take various measures to improve relevant infrastructures such as promoting environmental designs that take crime prevention into consideration and setting up street emergency call systems (super security lamps) as well as improve security services such as reinforcing patrols, enhancing functions of police boxes, providing the public with information on crimes, and supporting community crime prevention activities. Furthermore, citizens also make efforts to enhance crime prevention activities while developing cooperation with the investigating authorities, by recovering community ties and strengthening alignment within the neighborhood through residents' associations and parent-teacher associations as well as by collaborating with volunteer groups. Further enhancement and development of such public-private cooperation in crime prevention activities will contribute to preventing the rapid increase of crimes.