Malaysians will soon be able to use SMS text messages to tip off police in a nationwide crime reporting initiative, reports said today.

State police chiefs from across Malaysia are to meet next month to discuss implementing the system, which will also include a telephone hotline to report crimes, the Star daily said.

The scheme is an expansion of a programme introduced in Kuala Lumpur in August last year called Rakan Cop (Police Partner), which police have hailed as a success.

Established in response to growing crime, Rakan Cop allows members of the public to SMS or phone in crimes to a police hotline, and there are plans to extend the service with a website and an email service.

"The police in Kuala Lumpur were the first in the world to implement the SMS alerts," said Alwee Ghani, who heads the program at Kuala Lumpur police headquarters.

'Name and shame' website

According to police statistics, violent and property crimes in Kuala Lumpur have been reduced by 13.0 percent from January to August 15 in 2005 compared to the same period last year.

Bag-snatchings - for which Kuala Lumpur has become notorious - were down by 46.3 percent over the same period.

Alwee said the reduction in crime was attributable to the Rakan Cop programme.

"Through Rakan Cop, the public are our eyes and ears to the police," he told AFP . "We want the public to feel that they are our partners."

Police have been trying to involve the public in fighting crime, increasingly stressing that Malaysians have to do their bit to keep public order.

Another initiative to "name and shame" traffic offenders on a website using photos of errant drivers sent in by the public has proved popular, reportedly registering nearly 60,000 hits a day.