Criminalising severe forms of hate speech, supporting victims, ensuring co-operation between the police and prosecutors, enhancing the criminal justice system - these are among the key topics of discussions at the Conference on preventing and combating hate crime taking place on 19-20 June in Strasbourg.
In view of the recent increase of reported hate crime, there is a pressing need to take concerted and concrete action across Europe to address the root causes of hate crime and the prejudices which underlie it, to investigate and sentence hate crime more effectively.
"Hate crime demands a joint response. As recent events across Europe remind us, we have no time to waste. Building on Council of Europe's standards, let's work together to confront it, prevent it, and ensure hate finds no safe harbour," stressed Bjørn Berge, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe in his opening address to the participants of the event.
The Conference is organised by the Council of Europe's Steering Committee on Anti-discrimination, Diversity and Inclusion (CDADI) under the Maltese Presidency of the Committee of Ministers. Alexander Tortell, Head of Integration and Anti-Racism Unit at the Office of the Prime Minister of Malta also spoke at the opening of the event.
The conference provides an opportunity of exchanges for more than 300 actors working in the field of hate crime, with an ultimate goal to facilitate the implementation of the new Committee of Ministers Recommendation CM/Rec(2024)4 on combating hate crime.
Hate crime is a criminal offence committed with a hate element based on one or more actual or perceived personal characteristics or status of the victim. Hate crime can be a direct consequence of the escalation of hate speech. History shows that the spread, normalisation and trivialisation of hate speech is a precursor to hate crime, hostility and tragedies in our societies. The most severe forms of hate speech are criminalised and fall under the definition of hate crimes. For both criminalised hate speech and violent hate crime, a tailored legal and policy response will be required. The Committee of Ministers Recommendation contains specific guidance to member States and other stakeholders to prevent and combat hate crime, including criminalised hate speech.
This event is taking place in parallel with the Council of Europe's No Hate Speech Week, which provides a unique opportunity for participants to identify common problems and optimal strategies to combat hate crime, and in particular criminalised hate speech.
