According to www.worldmapper.org, a project by the University of Sheffield, in 2002 over half a million people died violent deaths in the world. The territories where the most violent deaths occurred were Brazil and India, each with over 57,000 that year.

Violent deaths in this case include homicide (murder and manslaughter), but exclude deaths due to war.

The territories where the highest proportion of people were murdered or killed in 2002 were Colombia, Sierra Leone and South Africa. The region with the most violent deaths was South America, followed by Southeastern Africa and Northern Africa. There were relatively few violent deaths resulting from murder or manslaughter in Japan and Western Europe.

The USA saw more violent deaths than Mexico that year. Almost 16,000 died violently in the USA compared to 10,300 in Mexico.

This is one shocking statistic considering how much the press on both sides of the border has been making sure that Mexico seems like the most dangerous place in the world.