Cyprus

In 2021, the Human Rights and Combating Discrimination Office of the Cyprus Police co-operated with ODIHR and the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) to organize a workshop on understanding and improving hate crime recording and data collection, held in February 2022. The workshop was based on ODIHR's Information Against Hate Crimes Toolkit (INFAHCT), and aimed to identify gaps in hate crime recording and data collection and to improve the relevant procedures and practices. Subsequently, ODIHR and FRA prepared a Report with a set of recommendations to be implemented by relevant state authorities. The Cyprus police has reviewed the report in order to begin implementing the recommendations, including procedural and structural changes in hate crime data collection.

A Working Group on enhancing inter-agency co-operation to address hate crime was formed. The Working Group is facilitated by ODHR and is made up of representatives of the Cyprus Police, the Ministry of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus, the Law Office of the Republic of Cyprus (Attorney General's Office), the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare of Cyprus, the Office of the Commissioner for Administration and Protection of Human Rights of Cyprus, the University of Cyprus, the CSO Hope For Children, the CSO Caritas Cyprus, and the CSO Cyprus Refugee Council. The Working Group was responsible for preparing a Memorandum of Understanding (an inter-agency protocol), signed by all members, on strengthening co-operation in the field of hate crime. The Memorandum was at the final stage of consultations when the 2021 Hate Crime Report was launched.

Furthermore, the Cyprus Police appointed 12 liaison officers – two per district department –responsible for: (i) co-ordinating and supervising the investigation of complaints concerning incidents of discrimination, racism and/or racist motives or other related hate crimes; (ii) ensuring that the Human Rights and Combating Discrimination Office of the Police is immediately informed about incidents or offences related to discrimination; and (iii) collaborating with officials of relevant state authorities or civil society organizations to report or record racist incidents and support victims of such crimes, etc.

The Cyprus Police has also prepared a form for reporting a racist offence. The form must be completed by every police officer who receives a complaint concerning any offence or incident committed with a racist motive. The form is then sent to the District Department's Liaison Officer responsible for monitoring anti-discrimination issues, who forwards it to the Human Rights and Combating Discrimination Office for statistical purposes. In addition, a questionnaire was disseminated among police officers to enable them to better identify hate crimes by asking specific questions to the victims.