Racist and xenophobic hate crime

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that Belarus improve its criminal law on acts of discrimination and hate speech, and make racist motivation an aggravating circumstance in determining sanctions for violent crimes.

The three Personal Representatives of the OSCE Chairperson‑in‑Office on tolerance and non‑discrim­ination made a joint visit to Belgium. Following the visit, the Personal Representatives presented their recommendations for the country, which included enhancing the relationship between law enforcement agencies and Muslim communities, police training on hate crimes and guidance on hate crime monitoring and data collection.

In its fifth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that the Belgian authorities ensure that the new regulations for collecting data on racist, homophobic and transphobic incidents are applied in practice, and that they designate a contact person responsible for monitoring racist, homophobic and transphobic crimes in each police district.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that Bosnia and Herzegovina strengthen its application of existing criminal provisions on hate speech and hate crimes.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) urged Cyprus to promptly investigate, prosecute and punish perpetrators of racially-motivated attacks and prevent their occurrence in the future.

In its “Concluding Observations on the Third Periodic Report of the Czech Republic”, the United Nations Human Rights Committee recommended that the Czech authorities ensure that judges, prosecutors and police officials be trained to detect hate crimes.

In his report following a country visit, the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe encouraged the Danish authorities to pursue efforts to train the police on recording and investigating hate crimes, as well as to encourage the reporting of hate crimes by potential victims. The Commissioner also noted that disability is not included among protected characteristics under Danish hate crime law.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that Finland reinforce training provided to members of the justice system on legislation relating to racism and racial discrimination, improve the monitoring of racist acts and ensure that racist crimes are duly punished under relevant national hate crime legislation.

In its fifth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) reiterated its recommendation that the German authorities expressly provide in the Criminal Code that a racist motivation constitutes an aggravating circumstance. ECRI also recommended that the system for recording and following up on racist, xenophobic, homophobic and transphobic incidents be reformed in order to capture all such instances. Finally, ECRI recommended that the police and prosecution services in all federal states establish focal points for recording complaints made by vulnerable groups.

The three Personal Representatives of the OSCE Chairperson‑in‑Office on tolerance and non‑discrim­ination made a joint visit to Greece. Following the visit, the Personal Representatives presented their recommendations for the country, which included police training on hate crimes.

The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe recommended that the country use criminal sanctions against individuals, and restrict the activities of organizations, that incite intolerance or that are implicated in hate crimes. The Commissioner further recommended the continuous provision of anti-racism training for the police, coast guard, prosecutors and judges.

The thematic situation report on “Racism, Discrimination, Intolerance and Extremism: Learning from Experiences in Greece and Hungary”, published by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), collected and analysed information from both countries, and presented EU Member States with a number of suggested good practices in combating racism, discrimination, intolerance and extremism.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that the NGO Coalition, A Working Group Against Hate Crime, conducts regular hate crime training for police, courts and prosecutors, provides legal help and support to victims of hate crime and conducts policy advocacy to improve guidance on hate crime issued by the Minister of Interior. The Working Group also translated guidelines from the International Association of Chiefs of Police on the efficient prevention and investigation of hate crimes and made it publicly accessible on its website.

The thematic situation report on “Racism, Discrimination, Intolerance and Extremism: Learning from Experiences in Greece and Hungary”, published by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), collected and analysed information from both countries, and presented EU Member States with a number of suggested good practices in combating racism, discrimination, intolerance and extremism.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that the Maltese authorities collect data on the application of criminal law provisions against racism in a systematic way.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) expressed concern about inadequate response to hate crimes, and recommended that the police and the judiciary ensure that criminal law is effectively applied in cases of violence against persons belonging to ethnic or religious minorities.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) welcomed the introduction by the Netherlands of anonymous online hate crimes reporting. ECRI reiterated its previous recommendation that the Dutch authorities develop a consistent central system for monitoring the application of criminal law provisions against racism.

The Macedonian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights and the OSCE Mission to Skopje set up the "Supporting National Stakeholders in Tackling Hate Crimes and Hate Speech" project. This project's overall goal is to increase understanding and strengthen the capacity of institutional and civil society stakeholders to effectively deal with hate crime and hate speech in accordance with domestic legislation, OSCE commitments and international standards.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that Portugal provide specific training for judges, prosecutors and the police on the application of the country’s criminal law provisions against racism and racial discrimination, with a particular emphasis on recognizing racist motivations.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that the Russian Ministry of Regional Development published "Strategy of the State National Policy of the Russian Federation for the Period through 2025" to address ‘inter-ethnic conflicts’ and strengthen ethno-cultural relations by 2020. The proposals include funding NGOs involved in the integration of migrants and introducing classroom curricula on inter-ethnic relations.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that the Russian Federation ensure prompt action by the police, prosecutors and judiciary in investigating and punishing racially-motivated crimes, and collect and publish hate crime statistics.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) welcomed progress achieved by the Russian Federation in a number of fields, including improvements to the criminal law, a reduction in statelessness and the targeting of ultranationalist organizations by law enforcement. It also observed a decline in the number of racist attacks. ECRI recommended that the Russian Federation revise the definition of extremism in the Federal Law on Combating Extremist Activity, to ensure that it only applies to serious cases involving hatred or violence. The law should also clearly specify the criteria to be met when declaring material "extremist".

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that San Marino amend its Criminal Code provision on aggravating factors in sentencing hate crimes, by introducing skin colour and language as protected characteristics.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that Slovakia take action to ensure the effective investigation and prosecution of hate crimes, and that the state provide the Committee with comprehensive hate crime statistics.

In its fourth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that the Slovenian authorities introduce a criminal law considering racist motivation as an aggravating circumstance for any offence. ECRI further recommended that the specific motive be recorded.

In a report following his visit to Spain, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance emphasized the importance of collecting data on racist offences by the police, prosecution services and the courts. The Special Rapporteur also commended Spain for creating the post of Public Prosecutor for Equal Treatment and Against Discrimination in the Supreme Court, as well as the posts of Public Prosecutors for Hate Crime and Discrimination in Madrid, Malaga, Seville and Valencia.

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that Sweden introduce a common and clear definition of hate crime that allows all reported hate crimes to be tracked through the justice system; replicate the establishment of police hate crime units and special investigators in all parts of the country; and extend to all parts of the country the hate crime training given to police, prosecutors and judges.

In its fifth report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recommended that the Swiss authorities improve their system for recording and monitoring violent incidents in order to obtain more reliable statistics on the racist, homophobic or transphobic motivation of offences.

In its “Concluding Observations on the Seventh Periodic Report of Ukraine”, the United Nations Human Rights Committee expressed concerns about the infrequent use of Article 161 of the Criminal Code (on inciting ethnic, racial or religious animosity or hatred) and that hate crimes are instead prosecuted under hooliganism charges. The Committee recommended that the state step up efforts to investigate and properly prosecute the perpetrators of hate crimes.

In its mission report on the United Kingdom, the United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent noted concerns about discrimination in various aspects of policing and the justice system in the country. The Working Group recommended that the legal framework for stop and search be amended to include requirements for reasonable suspicion for all police stops; that statistics anonymously identifying the ethnicity of persons subject to stop and search be collected and publicly reported; and that steps be taken towards increasing the number of people of African descent working in the law-enforcement and justice systems.