UN committee urges NI Executive to tackle racist violence

The Northern Ireland Executive and the PSNI were asked for comment in relation to the UN Committee’s statements.

The PSNI’s Hate Crime lead, Ch Supt Sue Steen, said “all forms of hate crime must be condemned in the strongest terms”.

She said the PSNI is “proactive” in its approach to the “prevention and detection of hate crime”.

“We know that some victims do not report hate crime for a variety of reasons,” she added.

“We have worked really hard to reach out to communities across Northern Ireland to increase confidence in policing and to encourage individuals to report to police.

“Where people report to police they can expect an enhanced level of investigation and supervision of investigations and support.”

Ch Supt Steen said there is “an onus on us all to support those people who may be victims of hate crime, to support our communities impacted by hate, to challenge prejudice and to support police in bringing offenders to justice by making any relevant information available to police”.

“We are also alive to the potential involvement of individuals associated with paramilitarism in the recent protests and associated disorder in a number of areas in Northern Ireland,” she added.

“We will continue to work with partners and in communities to play our part in trying to eradicate all forms of paramilitary activity and influence.”

Ch Supt Steen said the PSNI, along with the Department of Justice, continues to fund the Hate Crime Advocacy Service to support victims.