The total figures included in the breakdown below is different from the overall number given in the official data table above. This is because i) ten incidents included in the overall number were recorded under historic categories, which are no longer used for the purpose of recording hate crime by the Garda, and ii) non-crime hate incidents are excluded as they fall outside of the OSCE's hate crime definition.
In 2022, a new Bill on Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences was proposed following a review of the Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act (1989). The new Bill is currently before the legislative branch of the State. If enacted, the new legislation intends to criminalize any intentional or reckless communication or behaviour that is likely to incite violence or hatred against a person or persons because they are associated with a protected characteristic. The penalty for this offence will be up to five years' imprisonment.
The Bill will also create new, aggravated forms of certain existing criminal offences, where those offences are motivated by hatred of a protected characteristic. These will carry an enhanced penalty, and the criminal record will clearly state that the offence was a hate crime.
In 2022, the Garda designed a comprehensive Online Hate Crime Training Programme, which is now mandatory for all Garda members and Garda staff (civilians) with public-facing roles. The current completion rate of the training across the organization is 86 percent.
In addition, existing and new Garda Diversity Officers were trained in 2022 to actively engage with and attend to the concerns of minority and diverse communities, including by providing reassurance, building trust and extending the accessibility of the Garda Service. Contributions to each session were made by community representatives who detailed their communities' experience of victimization and discrimination.
In 2022, the National Diversity Forum (established in 2020), comprising of CSOs and community representatives from all diverse and/or minority backgrounds, completed the monitoring of the implementation of the Diversity and Integration Strategy for 2019-2021.
There were several notable hate crime cases in 2022. In Sligo, two gay men were murdered over a period of approximately 24 hours in the same area due to their sexual orientation. A resident in the town was arrested and charged with the two murders and is currently awaiting trial. In the aftermath of the killings, vigils were held in Sligo and around Ireland. Significant community support and reassurance efforts were made by the police to the LGBT+ Community in Ireland. In Dublin, a drag artist was attacked by a group of six men. The perpetrators were charged and judicial proceedings are ongoing. Also in Dublin, a man was convicted for 60 hours of community service after shouting racist abuse at a shopkeeper before becoming aggressive with responding Gardaí.
This category includes hate crimes motivated by bias based on "race", colour, nationality, and ethnicity. One anti-Roma and 15 anti-Traveller hate crimes were also recorded under this category. Fifty-one non-crime hate incidents were monitored under this category.
One non-crime hate incident was monitored under this category.
Two non-crime hate incidents were monitored under this category.
Two non-crime hate incidents were monitored under this category.
The categories of injured parties recorded under this category include: Hindu (1), Islamic (4) and Other (2).
Three non-crime hate incidents were monitored under this category.
This includes 119 hate crimes motivated by bias based on sexual orientation, and 20 hate crimes motivated by bias based on gender identity. A further 16 non-crime hate incidents motivated by bias based on sexual orientation bias and seven non-crime hate incidents motivated by bias based on gender identity bias were recorded under this category.
A further two non-crime hate incidents were monitored under this category.
ODIHR recognizes Ireland's efforts to enhance the capacity of law enforcement to identify, record and investigate hate crime. However, based on the available information, it observes that Ireland has not reported data on hate crimes recorded by the prosecution or judiciary to ODIHR. In addition, ODIHR observes that Ireland would benefit from reviewing its existing legal framework to ensure that bias motivations can be effectively acknowledged and appropriate penalties can be imposed on the perpetrators.
ODIHR recalls that in Ministerial Council Decision 9/09, OSCE participating States committed to collecting reliable data and statistics in sufficient detail on hate crimes and to reporting such information periodically to ODIHR. Participating States also committed to enacting specific, tailored legislation to combat hate crimes, providing for effective penalties that take into account the gravity of such crimes. ODIHR stands ready to support Ireland in meeting its relevant commitments through the provision of its comprehensive resources and tailored assistance in the area of hate crime recording and data collection, as well as by providing further legislative guidance and advice.
🛈 Please note that the total number of incidents may be lower than the sum of incidents presented in the breakdown chart above, as some incidents involve multiple bias motivations.
🛈 ODIHR no longer presents descriptions of property attacks in the incident tables below. Data on property attacks are presented in the breakdown charts above. One property attack may target multiple properties or involve multiple types of attack.