The number of reported crimes in Japan rose for the second year in a row in 2023, revealed on Friday.

Crime numbers in Japan had been steadily declining since 2003, continuing to hit postwar lows from 2015 to 2021, before bouncing back in 2022.

According to police data, there were 703,351 reported crimes and 269,550 cleared cases ¡ª meaning cases that law enforcement took action on ¡ª which respectively rose by 17% and 7.7% year on year. The figures exclude special law offenses such as road traffic-related violations.

Law enforcement took action against a total of 183,269 individual offenders in 2023, an 8.2% rise on 2022, marking the first increase in 19 years.

Reported incidents of nonconsensual sexual intercourse saw a significant increase of 63.8% compared to a year before, reaching a total of 1,237.

Reported cases of indecent assault increased by 29.5% year on year. Justice Ministry officials cited the change of legal age of consent that went into effect last year and the improved environment for reporting such acts as major factors.

The numbers of cleared cases of child abuse, cybercrime and violations of the Cannabis Control Law all reached their highest levels since statistics began in 2000.

In particular, there were 8,232 cleared cases of Cannabis Control Law violations in 2023, a 19.5% increase from a year before. The white paper noted that a rising number of people between the ages of 20 and 29 were responsible for such cases, making up over half of the total.

Cleared crime cases committed by foreign residents and visitors in 2023 also rose by 20% from a year before, reaching a total of 15,541.

The paper also made mention of yami baito (illegal part-time jobs) and ³Ù´Ç°ì³Ü°ù²â¨± (quasi-gangsters who thrive on anonymity and a lack of structure) for the first time, vowing greater efforts to investigate and tackle such crimes.

The government hopes to include a more detailed analysis on such crimes next year as more data becomes available, according to Justice Ministry officials.

This year¡¯s white paper also highlighted the status of female offenders and inmates in 2023. While in 2023 women only represented slightly more than 10% of all new inmates, 22.7% of them were 65 and older, compared with 13.3% among males.

The paper also included a special survey that was conducted with 461 female and 447 male inmates who started their sentences between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2022. It shows mental and chronic conditions are more prevalent among women in prison and can be caused by a number of factors including drug addiction.