More than half of the nongovernmental organizations monitoring hate crimes in the European Union have no working definition for what constitutes a hate crime, according to a new survey.
The survey was answered by representatives of 44 watchdog NGOs from across the EU. The results were to be released at a conference on hate crime registration in the EU sponsored by the Brussels-based CEJI: A Jewish Contribution to an Inclusive Europe, scheduled to end on April 19, exactly one month after a Muslim extremist killed a rabbi and three children at a Jewish school in Toulouse, France.
“The killings in Toulouse are a tragic reminder that hate crimes continue to grow unabated in Europe,” said CEJI director Robin Sclafani.
Of the 44 NGOs surveyed, 27 reported that they had no system to verify complaints. Seventeen did not share information with police.
The survey and conference were part of a larger project to help watchdogs become more effective.
Sclafani noted that only 12 EU members collect “good or comprehensive” data, according to the 2010 Fundamental Rights Agency Report. — jta