Beleaguered Police Commissioner Mr. Colin Coxall produced some positive results for his many critics to chew on yesterday when he reported a decrease this year in the number of burglaries, purse snatchings, cycle thefts and assaults.

On Friday night and Saturday morning, the Commissioner, a transplanted Briton who has served in the post since April, heard a lengthy and often vitriolic tongue-lashing in the House of Assembly over his recently published strategy for streamlining Bermuda's Police Service. Full debate: Page 4 During the debate, Opposition Progressive Labour Party MPs characterised both Mr. Coxall and his strategies, particularly the redundancy this month of Assistant Commissioner Mr. Wayne Perinchief, as mercenary, unfeeling, draconian and despotic.

Bermuda, said Opposition Leader Mr. Frederick Wade, "would be like Singapore -- harsh and undemocratic. We want people who will understand and treat people like human beings.'' Opposition MP Mrs. Lois Browne Evans, who said Mr. Coxall had a "have gun, will travel'' attitude, added: "It's the wrong message to send to the community, who happen to like and respect their Bermudian Policemen.'' Government MPs responded by saying that the community wanted improved policing and were growing fearful about the apparent spiral of violence and crime on the Island.

In his statement yesterday, Mr. Coxall, who proposes more foot patrols and community policing, a greater focus on crime prevention and the reduction of Police bureaucracy, said: "I thought it would be worthwhile to let the public know that I have received further encouraging statistics on crime in the latter half of the year.

"Although these figures do not take the last month of the year into account, the encouraging downward trend in some key categories of crime appears to be continuing.'' A few of the statistics that Mr. Coxall noted were: Violent crimes to November 30 -- including murder, the commission of grievous bodily harm and assault -- have decreased from 504 reported offences in 1994 to 446 reported cases. The Commissioner said: "Unless December proves to be an unusual month, we should show a decrease for the year in that category.'' The burglary of homes, stores and offices are "running well below'' last year, from 1,821 in 1994 to 1,256 so far this year. "I am fairly confident,'' Mr. Coxall said, "there will be a year-on-year decrease in this area.'' Handbag snatching is "also well down'' -- from 83 reported cases in 1994 to 43 cases this year. And cycle thefts, which decreased from 2,536 reported cases in 1994 to 1,837 cases in the first 11 months of 1995, are expected to barely exceed the 2,000 mark this year. Even so, Mr. Coxall called the level of cycle theft on the Island "unacceptable'' and promised to work with the Corporation of Hamilton to make thefts from City car parks "more difficult''.

Despite these successes, the Commissioner noted in his report that the statistics "do not all show a completely rosy picture''.

Allegations of rape in the first 11 months of the year have gone up by 45 percent over last year, although the "base numbers'' remain "relatively small'' (29 rapes this year in comparison to 20 in all of last year).

Robberies have also increased by 10 percent this year, while larceny from vehicles is expected to surpass the 1994 level by year's end.

And Mr. Coxall said that he remained "very concerned by the proliferation of drugs in Bermuda''.

"As some members of the public will have heard me say before, I intend to shift direction somewhat in the new year, making a very much greater effort to target the major players on the drugs scene -- the dealers and the financiers -- than has been the case in the past,'' he said.

Even so, Mr. Coxall said that he was generally "encouraged by the figures as a whole''.

"As I said in the Police Service Strategy, the changes that are occurring in the Police Service will undoubtedly result in more efficient policing in Bermuda,'' he said.

"We are at the very beginning of a process which will go on for years, but I have every confidence that the steps we are taking to improve training and personnel management, to improve crime prevention and to improve our technical ability to investigate crime will quickly pay dividends in a safer Bermuda.''