Latest news with #ECRI
The Sun
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Hate speech rising in Portugal: European monitor
LISBON: Portugal's leaders must do more to fight crimes and hate speech against minorities, including immigrants, Roma, black people and LGBTQ people, the Council of Europe's anti-discrimination body said Wednesday. In a new report, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) highlighted a sharp rise in hate speech in Portugal. It comes as the far-right party Chega has risen to become the main opposition force. ECRI 'calls on Portugal to improve the way law enforcement officials deal with hate crimes and to commit to Roma inclusion,' the Strasbourg-based body said in a statement. 'ECRI expresses concern about the rise of online hate speech and the divisive and inflammatory discourse used by some politicians,' it added, singling out some members of Chega. The party became the country's main opposition force following May's legislative elections. 'Cases of hate-motivated violence have been reported, at times involving neo-Nazi groups,' the statement added. On Tuesday, police in Portugal announced the arrest of six individuals affiliated with a far-right group, suspected of 'terrorist activities, discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence'. Local media reported on Wednesday that one of those arrested was a police officer and that the group he allegedly belonged to was planning, among other things, an attack on the parliament. The ECRI report also noted the persistence of reports about cases of racist abuse, including racial profiling, by the police.
Local Sweden
3 days ago
- Politics
- Local Sweden
European anti-racism council raises concerns over Swedish government policy
Parts of the Tidö Agreement, the policy document agreed between the three government parties and the far-right Sweden Democrats, have led the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) to raise concerns over integration and discrimination in Sweden. Advertisement ECRI regularly monitors the situation in EU member states when it comes to racism and intolerance, giving credit for positive developments and raising its concerns if it believes policy risks making things worse. In its sixth report on Sweden, the commission praised the progress Sweden has made since the last report was issued at the end of 2017. This include the fact that Sweden has set up a museum about the Holocaust and criminalised Holocaust denial, issued new guidelines for investigating hate crimes and is attempting to increase the number of children with immigrant backgrounds attending preschool. However, it also found that there were some areas of concern ‒ many of which are policies directly listed as government aims in the Tidö Agreement ‒ which it argued could increase "the feeling of marginalisation and exclusion among migrants". "There are shortcomings in many teachers' capacity to teach about racism and intolerance, including LGBTI issues, while current confrontations and conflicts in and outside Europe (including the current conflict in the Middle East) and manifestations of racism and intolerance in society are reflected in classrooms," the report reads. It also highlighted the fact that Sweden's Discrimination Act does not list sex as a protected characteristic, nor does the Criminal Code list it as a potential motivation for hate speech or hate crimes. "Available statistics show that Black persons and people of African descent, often young, are common victims of hate crime, despite significant underreporting due to a lack of trust in the criminal justice system on the part of the victims," the report reads. Advertisement ECRI specifically mentioned some policies included in the Tidö Agreement as cause for concern, writing that proposals such as tightening the conditions for family reunification, restricting permanent residency rules and deporting foreign nationals for conduct not considered appropriate "are likely to increase the sense of marginalisation and exclusion among migrants, and thus be harmful to integration". In addition to this, it criticised the introduction of "security zones" or areas where the police are able to carry out stop and searches of people or vehicles without necessarily suspecting that a crime has been committed, warning that they bring "great risks of racial profiling." Sweden was given a number of recommendations. The commission said that Sweden should "reinvigorate the role of education as a tool to better live together in intercultural societies" as well as creating a better understanding within education of issues linked to racist and homophobic stereotypes, or stereotypes related to religion and beliefs. This, it said, could include better publicising existing resources as well as providing compulsory training for teachers on these issues. Swedish authorities and public officials were also encouraged to take a "prompt, firm and public" stance against racism and hate speech against LGBT people. It also called for Swedish authorities to collect "anonymised and disaggregated" data on hate crimes and review police guidelines on stop and search activities, specifically when it comes to the treatment of children and young people.
Euronews
03-06-2025
- General
- Euronews
Police officer who shot teenager dead in 2023 to be tried for murder
A French police officer will face a murder trial next year over the 2023 killing of teenager Nahel Merzouk, a decision reached at the end of a two-year investigation. The trial of the 38-year-old officer could take place in the second or third quarter of 2026, the court and prosecutor in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where the killing at point-blank range took place, said in a joint statement. The lawyer for Merzouk's mother, Frank Berton, welcomed the order for a trial. "We are just seeing the law being applied (...) Now all that remains is to convince the court," he told the AFP news agency. Meanwhile, the defendant's lawyer criticised the decision, adding it was "both disappointing and not surprising." "The investigating judge would have had to be courageous to take a different position than that of the prosecution," Laurent-Franck Liénard, the officer's lawyer, told AFP, adding that he would lodge an appeal against the order. "We maintain that the shooting was legitimate," he said. The officer, identified by domestic media as Florian M., was charged with Merzouk's murder. He was released from custody in November 2023 after five months in detention pending further investigation. He is currently under judicial supervision, meaning his movements are restricted. Merzouk, a teenager of North African descent, was shot dead on 27 June 2023 as he pulled away from police during a traffic stop. Police initially maintained that Merzouk had driven his car at the officer. However, this was contradicted by a video which showed two officers standing outside a stationary car, with one pointing a weapon at its driver. A voice was heard saying: "You are going to get a bullet in the head." Video footage of the shooting itself went viral and sparked protests that escalated into rioting and led to scenes of devastation nationwide. Thousands of people were arrested as the government ratcheted up its law enforcement response to quell the unrest, injuring hundreds. Between 2022 and Merzouk's murder the next year, 15 people were killed by police during traffic stops. Not all officers were charged. After the death of Merzouk, the UN called on France to address "the deep-rooted problems of racism and racial discrimination" in its police force. Meanwhile, the Council of Europe's human rights monitoring body (ECRI) warned last month that law enforcement officials across Europe continue to use racial profiling. It has long recommended that French authorities introduce an effective system of recording identity checks by law enforcement officers. "France is one country of concern when it comes to racial profiling," Bertil Cottier, chair of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), told Euronews. "We noticed a couple of months ago sadly that our recommendation on combating racial profiling — in particular on tracing the police officers who (incorrectly) stopped people — has been ignored so far," he added.
The Sun
30-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Italy calls Council of Europe 'shameful' after warning on police racism
ROME: Italy lashed out at the Council of Europe on Thursday and defended its police after the European human rights body named Italy among countries where racist conduct among law enforcers was a problem. In presenting its 2025 annual report on Wednesday, the head of the Council's Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) urged Italy to launch an independent enquiry into evidence that its police disproportionately targeted immigrants. Bertil Cottier said so-called 'racial profiling', by which the police stop people on the basis of their skin colour or presumed nationality or religion, appeared to be an issue in Italy and called on the government to look into it. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her deputy Matteo Salvini, who both lead far-right parties that base their appeal on law-and-order and the fight against illegal immigration, bluntly dismissed the suggestion. 'ECRI's words, accusing the Italian police of racism, are simply shameful,' Brothers of Italy chief Meloni posted on social media platform X on Wednesday. League leader Salvini doubled down on Thursday, telling reporters in Rome that the anti-racism panel 'should be ashamed,' and calling it 'another useless body paid for by Italian and European citizens, that produces rubbish in return.' The head of state Sergio Mattarella summoned Italy's police chief for a meeting on Thursday, 'to re-confirm the admiration and trust of the country in its law enforcers.' The Council of Europe did not respond to a request for comment. The Strasbourg-based organisation, which has 46 member states, was founded in 1949 to promote democracy and human rights in the continent. The latest ECRI report was an overview of its activities in 2024 and did not specifically discuss the Italian situation. However, in ECRI's latest country-specific report in October, it flagged 'numerous accounts of racial profiling by law enforcement officials, targeting especially Roma and people of African descent' in Italy.
The Sun
30-05-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Italy calls Council of Europe 'shameful' for police racism
ROME: Italy lashed out at the Council of Europe on Thursday and defended its police after the European human rights body named Italy among countries where racist conduct among law enforcers was a problem. In presenting its 2025 annual report on Wednesday, the head of the Council's Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) urged Italy to launch an independent enquiry into evidence that its police disproportionately targeted immigrants. Bertil Cottier said so-called 'racial profiling', by which the police stop people on the basis of their skin colour or presumed nationality or religion, appeared to be an issue in Italy and called on the government to look into it. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her deputy Matteo Salvini, who both lead far-right parties that base their appeal on law-and-order and the fight against illegal immigration, bluntly dismissed the suggestion. 'ECRI's words, accusing the Italian police of racism, are simply shameful,' Brothers of Italy chief Meloni posted on social media platform X on Wednesday. League leader Salvini doubled down on Thursday, telling reporters in Rome that the anti-racism panel 'should be ashamed,' and calling it 'another useless body paid for by Italian and European citizens, that produces rubbish in return.' The head of state Sergio Mattarella summoned Italy's police chief for a meeting on Thursday, 'to re-confirm the admiration and trust of the country in its law enforcers.' The Council of Europe did not respond to a request for comment. The Strasbourg-based organisation, which has 46 member states, was founded in 1949 to promote democracy and human rights in the continent. The latest ECRI report was an overview of its activities in 2024 and did not specifically discuss the Italian situation. However, in ECRI's latest country-specific report in October, it flagged 'numerous accounts of racial profiling by law enforcement officials, targeting especially Roma and people of African descent' in Italy.
