More than 500 murders

AUCKLAND: More than 500 people have been murdered in New Zealand in the past 11 years.

New figures released by the New Zealand police show 518 people were murdered between 2007 and 2017.

There were another 216 cases of manslaughter in the same period.

But the rate is dropping. Provisional statistics show 35 people were murdered last year. That equates to seven murders per million people — the lowest murder rate the country has had since 1975 and less than half that of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

The total number of homicides, which includes both murder and manslaughter, has dropped for the past two years; there were 58 in 2016 and 48 last year, according to provisional data.

Detective Superintendent Tim Anderson, national manager of criminal investigations, said although the number of homicides was declining, every one of those numbers represented a grieving family.

Police were committed to bringing a sense of closure to victims’ families by holding those responsible to account, Det Sup Anderson said.

‘‘It is this commitment and dedication which saw police resolve more than 96% of homicide cases,’’ he said.

The number of people killed by a current or former partner was also dropping. Between 2007 and 2011 there were 63, compared with 52 between 2012 and 2016.

‘‘We know that family harm is a serious issue that affects people of all ages and across all parts of society,’’ Det Sup Anderson said.

‘‘Disturbingly, children under the age of 5 made up 12% of homicide victims.’’ — NZME