Hate crime statistics: gaps, progress and challenges ahead DG JUSTICE and CONSUMERS Unit C.2: Fundamental Rights Policy

Introduction People across the EU continue to be targeted by hate crimes – i.e. illegal hate speech or other criminal offences motivated by hatred on grounds of the victim's personal characteristics, be it their race, religion, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation or gender identity, their disability, social status, or other characteristics.

The EU addresses hate crimes by: monitoring relevant EU legislation providing for common minimum standards to combat hate crime and rules on the support and protection of victims a variety of EU policy measures to improve responses of national authorities and other actors on the ground, including expert discussions and funding

Legal framework Minimum standards on racist hate crime and penalties: Framework Decision on combating certain forms and expressions of racism and xenophobia by means of criminal law (2008) Minimum standards on rights, support and protection of victims of crime (including specific attention to hate crime victims, and a specific provision on statistics): Victims' Rights Directive (2012)

Policy framework Building on the existing legal framework, a broad range of measures support national authorities in stepping up efforts to prevent and counter more effectively the spread of intolerance and hatred, better enforce hate crime laws and provide victims with the necessary support and assistance. Improving the monitoring of trends and responses at national and EU level is key to support these efforts.

The Commission set up in 2016 a EU High Level Group on combating racism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance, which: Gathers regularly Member States, international organizations, civil society, EU agencies Fosters discussions on gaps, challenges and responses, promotes best practice exchange, develops guidance. The follow up/implementation of this work is supported by targeted financial support.

In this context, thematic work is carried out on improving national methodologies on recording and collecting data on hate crimes. This is done through a sub-group on recording and data collection methodologies led by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). The sub-group was established in 2016 with an initial mandate of two years.

Why is progress on hate crime data collection needed? Research shows that persistent gaps exist in the collection of data on the incidence of hate crimes in EU MS. This includes the collection of data on hate speech including online hate speech. COM already stressed the importance of reliable, comparable and systematically collected hate crime data as a means to contribute ensuring effective implementation of existing EU legislation on the ground, in its report on the Framework Decision on racism adopted in 2014.

Hate crime statistics should ideally provide accurate information on: 1) recorded hate crimes, to assess the extent of the phenomenon (this could also be complemented by experience-based surveys); 2) levels of prosecution and sentencing, to monitor criminal justice responses; 3) the way hate crime victims accessed their rights to monitor support and protection to victims. Data should, as far as possible, be disaggregated by type of offence and bias motivation.

Relevant progress achieved so far The FRA-led sub-group on recording and data collection methodologies started its work focusing on ways to improve the recording of hate crime by law enforcement officers, i.e. the way police systematically identifies and records crimes reported by victims as hate crimes. This work has been carried out with national experts from Justice and Interior Ministries/law enforcement agencies.

The sub-group compiled key guiding principles on hate crime recording, including operational principles, which are now being tested and implemented through country workshops. This should lead to an improvement in the recording of hate crimes by law enforcement authorities in a number of Member States (i.e. more data recorded). The sub-group will also compile this year a report on “Practices on recording and collecting data on hate crime in the EU”, which will provide an overview of practices for all 28 MS.

Challenges ahead In the coming years, the progress achieved should be built upon and followed up by efforts to improve the way recorded data can be turned into hate crime statistics (> to assess the extent of the phenomenon). Ways to collect data on prosecution and sentencing (> to monitor criminal justice responses) and on the way hate crime victims accessed their rights (> to monitor support and protection to victims) could also be explored.

Focus should be put on improving methodologies at national level, also building on existing practices in some MSs, in order to improve, in the long run, the comparability of data at EU level. Main challenges are likely to relate to: - real or perceived barriers to disaggregation of data; - difference in how hate crimes are defined in national law (for the purpose of comparability); - coordination between statistics services, law enforcement and judicial authorities.

Way forward?