While explicitly not trying to take a side: >If that were the case population level rates would be relatively stable over time and not vary dramatically by cou

While explicitly not trying to take a side: >If that were the case population level rates would be relatively stable over time and not vary dramatically by country but that is wildly not the case. That would be true if and only if the measurements were accurate and did not change by time or location. The measurement strategies have been changing dramatically in the past decades, and countries are almost universally in disagreement over the (significant) details. Wide variance in time and location are definitely expected, drawing a conclusion based on that is very much standing on shaky ground.