Equal Protection for All Victims of Hate Crime the Case of People with Disabilities
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03/2015 Equal protection for all victims of hate crime The case of people with disabilities Hate crimes violate the rights to human dignity and non-discrimination enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention of Human Rights. Nevertheless, people with disabilities often face violence, discrimination and stigmatisation every day. This paper discusses the difficulties faced by people with disabilities who become victims of hate crime, and the different legal frameworks in place to protect such victims in the EU’s Member States. It ends by listing a number of suggestions for improving the situation at both the legislative and policy levels. Key facts FRA Opinions People with disabilities face discrimination, EU and national criminal law provisions stigmatisation and isolation every day, relating to hate crime should treat all which can be a formidable barrier to their grounds equally, from racism and inclusion and participation in the community xenophobia through to disability Disability is not included in the EU’s hate The EU and its Member States should crime legislation systematically collect and publish Victims of disability hate crime are often disaggregated data on hate crime, including reluctant to report their experiences hate crime against people with disabilities If incidents of disability hate crime are Law enforcement officers should be trained reported, the bias motivation is seldom and alert for indications of bias motivation recorded, making investigation and when investigating crimes prosecution less likely Trust-building measures should be undertaken to encourage reporting by disabled victims of bias-motivated or other forms of crime Equal protection for all victims of hate crime - The case of people with disabilities “[We want] to stop them being racist against us and stop some 80 million people in total. These bullying us on the streets. Every time you go anywhere numbers are set to rise as the EU´s population you have people calling us nasty names or talking behind ages.5 our backs calling us stupid or calling us crazy; we’re not crazy.” Not all hostility against people with disabilities is Woman with an intellectual disability, United Kingdom, age criminal. However, intentional and targeted 1 unknown violence, hostility or hate crimes against people with disabilities all have one factor in common: they are motivated by prejudice. Victims are targeted simply because they are disabled, are Introduction perceived as disabled, or are associated with a disabled person. Offenders thus convey a People with disabilities have been excluded from particularly humiliating message, as they mainstream society for centuries, and still face victimise people for who they are (or are discrimination, stigmatisation and isolation even perceived to be), and the victim remains at risk today. Research by the EU Agency for of repeat victimisation and at the same time Fundamental Rights (FRA) shows that violence, repeat humiliation. harassment and abuse are common experiences for many people with disabilities, creating a Hate crime therefore does not only affect formidable barrier to their inclusion and individual victims, but damages society as a participation in the community.2 An age-old whole by undermining the basic democratic assumption that disabled people should be pitied, principles of equality and respect for human rather than respected as individuals with the dignity. right to live free from violence, often detracts from the severity of the violence they face, making it more difficult to recognise either its causes or its consequences. Everyday reality Violence and crimes motivated by racism, “When I’m on the bus … just normal people. When I stand xenophobia, religious intolerance or by prejudice there or sit there perfectly normally, the normal people say towards a person’s disability, sexual orientation ‘The disabled, the disabled,’ and it really gets on my or gender identity are all forms of hate crime. nerves, I almost wanted to get up and ask them what While hate crimes linked to race, ethnicity or they’ve got against disabled people, but then I didn’t have religion have been on the EU’s agenda for a the guts, but I will do next time.” number of years, disability is less often taken into consideration when hate crime legislation is Man with an intellectual disability, Germany, 39 years old 6 drafted. FRA has demonstrated in a number of studies that violence and crimes motivated by racism, The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons xenophobia or homophobia are a daily reality for with Disabilities (CRPD) is the first and to date many people the EU.7 While there is a lack of data only UN Treaty that the EU itself and all but on the prevalence of crimes against people with three Member States – Finland, Ireland and the disabilities, FRA research suggests that people Netherlands – have signed and ratified.3 with intellectual disabilities or mental health problems are at a particularly high risk of According to the CRPD, “Persons with victimisation. Interviews conducted by FRA in disabilities include those who have long-term nine EU countries paint a picture of physical, mental, intellectual or sensory discrimination, harassment, bullying and abuse.8 impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective Preliminary findings of FRA’s current research participation in society on an equal basis with into violence and hostility against children with others” (Art. 1.2.).4 disabilities indicate that incidents of verbal, physical, sexual and emotional violence, One in six people in the EU has a disability that harassment and abuse are commonplace both at ranges from mild to severe, which makes school and in the wider community. 9 2 FRA Focus 03/2015 In general, official statistics on disability hate Underreporting crime are available in only a few EU Member States, for example Croatia, Finland, Netherlands “No, I was simply scared. Because other patients there said 10 and the United Kingdom. To improve this that if you complained, you would be treated badly. situation, the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Yes, by the same orderly. So I just kept my mouth shut.” Institutions and Human Rights has produced a guide to hate crime data collection and Man with mental health problems, Latvia, age unknown.14 monitoring that provides ´ten practical steps´ to improve recording systems, provide a better Victims of crime from minority groups are often understanding of the extent of underreporting, reluctant to report incidents and unable or and encourage victims to report hate crimes.11 unwilling to seek redress.15 In the case of people with disabilities, poor rights awareness and a lack Promising practice of support structures or accessible complaints mechanisms exacerbate the problem. Incidents Disability-related harassment and its impact of disability hate crime reported to the police or on UK policy made public by the media are thus only the tip of the iceberg. Following a 2011 enquiry by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) into According to British research, people with disability-related harassment,12 which disabilities may decide not to report hate crimes demonstrated the high level of harassment for fear of the possible consequences, concerns and violence against people with disabilities, they will not be believed, or fear of 16 the UK government took steps to tackle recrimination. Other reasons often given disability hate crime more effectively. include the belief the crime may not be regarded A progress report was published in late 2013, as serious enough, or that the complaint would highlighting action already taken and that not be believed because of the victim’s planned for the future.13 One change was an disability.17 Furthermore, many of the people FRA amendment to the Criminal Justice Act raising interviewed for its research on the situation of the minimum sentence for bias-motivated people with intellectual disabilities or mental murders of people with disabilities to the health problems showed low levels of rights same level as that for racially motivated awareness or knowledge about filing 18 murders. The Law Commission also examined complaints. other offences, such as incitement to hatred on the grounds of disability, for which it held Promising practice consultations with a number of civil society organisations. The Code of Practice for Guiding the police when assisting people Victims of Crime was reviewed with a view to with disabilities improving services for persistently harassed victims, and the Crown Prosecution Service In Spain, the Guardia Civil has developed a updated its disability hate crime action plan. specialised guide for police officers to help In the area of education, the school them provide a better service to people with inspectorate surveyed bullying and its intellectual disabilities. consequences. For more Information, see ‘Guía de For more information, see the UK intervención policial con personas con government’s response and progress update discapacidad intelectual’ available at: to the EHRC report ‘Hidden in Plain Sight’, http://eprints.ucm.es/20207/ available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio ns/government-response-hidden-in-plain- If incidents of hate crime are not reported and sight-report perpetrators are not held accountable, victims are at a high risk of repeat victimisation and bias- motivated harassment. This can take many forms, from name-calling in the street to mistreatment