On 27 April, EJTN organized a webinar on hate crimes, attended by about 50 practitioners, including judges, prosecutors and court staff from across the EU.
The event aimed at raising awareness among practitioners about the legal framework applicable to hate crimes, the recent European Court of Human Rights case law, and the needs of victims of specific groups. Participants also shared best national practices for handling racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia and sexism cases.
This activity was part of a series of webinars dedicated to victims’ rights -focusing on victims’ needs of hate crimes in the EU. These webinars aim to provide practical and up-to-date legal knowledge to EU practitioners, ensuring justice for hate crime victims and a victim-centered approach.
EU judges and prosecutors play a central role in tackling hate crimes and fundamental rights violations, holding perpetrators accountable and ensuring hate crime victims receive adequate support, recognition and respectful treatment.
In addition to organizing this seminar, EJTN is also supporting the EU campaign “I will keep my eyes open”, recently launched by the European Commission, which aims at creating an environment where all crime victims feel safe and supported and are empowered to use their rights.
Coordination and experts
The EJTN webinar on hate crimes was coordinated by Mónica Martí-García, EJTN’s Senior Project Manager for Criminal Justice, and benefited from the participation of the following experts:
• Stella Giailoglou. Public Prosecutor; EJTN Activity Coordinator and representative of the National School for Judges-Greece
• Petros Alikakos. President of the Court of First Instance of Thessaloniki, Greece
• Sławomir Buczma. Former Judge and Senior Legal Officer at European Public Prosecutor’s Office-EPPO
• Levent Altan. Executive Director of Victim Support Europe (VES)
Note for editors
Note for editors
Hate crimes are a grave abuse of a person’s dignity and violate the core values of the European Union and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Member States are responsible for providing targeted support and protection to hate crime victims. Against this background, it is essential that practitioners understand how to address the harm to hate crime victims and their specific needs.
In June 2020, the European Commission published a Roadmap for an EU Strategy on victims’ rights (2020-2025), which pays special attention to victims of hate crimes.
The Strategy outlines five key priorities: empowering victims of crimes, improving protection and support of the most vulnerable victims, facilitating victims’ access to compensation, strengthening cooperation and coordination, and the international dimension of victims’ rights.
