Discrimination is a hot item in the Netherlands, both in the news as well as on the agenda of many civil society organizations. Equal treatment and the principle of non-discrimination are at the heart of the Dutch democratic rule of law, and they form one of the most important themes of the National Action Plan on Human Rights, which details the way in which the Dutch government fulfills its task to protect and promote human rights in the Netherlands.

Discrimination is a social problem that is high on the political agenda of the government, which is currently carrying out a study into discrimination in various areas with the aim to ban discrimination in all its forms.

Settlements

Following a study by the Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM), the former minister of security and justice, Ivo Opstelten, announced in a letter dated May 19, 2014, that a study will be carried out into the course of cases of discrimination within the criminal law chain.

The study has shown that there is a large difference between the number of cases of discrimination in the police records and the number of settlements by the OM. The police reported 3,292 incidents of discrimination in 2012, while only 144 discriminatory offenses had reached the OM that year.

'Complete picture'

The study, which is conducted by the Research and Documentation Center (WODC) that is part of the Ministry of Security and Justice, should provide a complete picture of all the cases of discrimination that have been dealt with by both the police as well as the OM, including criminal offenses aggravated by discriminatory behavior.

It should also shed light on what has happened to these cases. Among other things, this overview should help the WODC interpret the difference in the number of cases of discrimination between the police and the OM. In addition, the WODC aims to explain the reduction in the number of recorded cases of discrimination in 2012 and 2013 compared with preceding years.

This is of particular importance in view of the fact that in recent years the news and social media leave the impression that discrimination is on the rise. The study will be ready by the end of 2015.

Contributor: Yasemin Yildiz