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cases registered might belong to the category of criminal discrimination, but the definitions used in the Monitor on Racism and Extremism are not always the legal definitions. That makes it difficult, perhaps even impossible, to use the data of this Monitor together with the data registered in connection with prosecuting and sentencing specific criminal discrimination. 13 3.4 Recent Dutch research on criminal discrimination 3.4.1 Introduction In the Netherlands research on criminal discrimination took place recently covering the period 2000 – 2005. 14 It was initiated by the Dutch Permanent Parliamentary Committee on Justice in 2006 that wanted to be informed on the use of criminal law in the fight against discrimination and on the question whether present sentences were high enough and effective. The research tried to determine in which way the Department of Public Prosecution and the courts dealt with cases of criminal discrimination. For what concerns specific criminal discrimination all data registered in the Netherlands between 2000 and 2005 were analysed in this research. Therefore principally the research result answers the quantitative question of “how often was a certain decision taken” for the whole country. Nevertheless the fact that there were only relatively few cases registered makes it probable that the dark number of cases is high and consequently there exist certain reserves about the representativeness of the cases that came to the attention of the police. In the field of common criminal discrimination the lack of data is even greater. Accordingly the research could only be based on 91 case studies. That means the results cannot offer more than a first impression of what is reality in this field. 3.4.2 Some results of the research on specific criminal discrimination Between 2000 and 2005, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service issued 803 summonses – on average 58% of the 1.453 specific discrimination offences that came to the attention of the 13 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, WODC 2007, p. 213. 14 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, see above, 2007. 6
prosecutors during the research period. On average, the prosecution was dropped in a good 20% of cases, and 16% were settled out of court by means of a prosecutor’s fine (transaction). To illustrate the meaning of these data we relate the number of specific discrimination cases of one year to the total number of criminal law cases that came to the attention of the Public Prosecutor Service during the same year. In 2004 this were 273.974 cases, 141 of which or 0,05 % being specific discrimination cases. 15 According to the registered data each year between 2000 and 2005, Dutch courts convicted in between 93 and 118 specific discrimination cases, with on average about 9% overall acquittals. 16 The total number of cases settled by the Dutch district courts in 2004 was 133.218 Penal Law cases, only 48 of them or 0,04% being specific discrimination cases. 17 Most of all kind of cases take place on the street or in the neighbourhood. Focusing on the offences the research resulted in the following: 54% of the cases were verbal discriminations, in 30% of the cases aggression was involved, in about 4-5% of the cases vandalism and property offences. 18 2/3 of the verbal discriminations were committed individually and one third together with others. When violence played a role twice as many cases were committed with a group than individually. 19 52% of the offenders did not use alcoholics or drugs, 41% were under influence of alcoholics, 4% of drugs and 4% of both. 20 There were three main reasons for discrimination found: In 29% of the cases Turkish or Arabian ethnicity was decisive, in 23% the colour and in 22% anti-Semitism. The Islam was only registered as reason in 4% and religion in 3% of the cases. 21 15 N.E. de Lange, A.M. van der Laan, S. Bogaerts, Vervolging en berechting in: W. van der Heide, A.Th.J. Eggen, Criminaliteit en rechtshandhaving 2006, Onderzoek en beleid 255, Boon, CBS, WODC 2007, p. 421. 16 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, WODC 2007, p. 247. 17 N.E. de Lange, A.M. van der Laan, S. Bogaerts, Vervolging en berechting in: W. van der Heide, A.Th.J. Eggen, Criminaliteit en rechtshandhaving 2006, Boon, CBS, WODC 2007, p. 432. 18 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, WODC 2007, p. 274. 19 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, WODC 2007, p. 300. 20 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie WODC 2007, p. 302. 21 Ch. Brants, R. Kool, A. Rignalda, Strafbare discriminatie, WODC 2007, p. 303. 7
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