Scotland's new hate crime laws welcomed
Commission in Scotland welcomes new hate crime laws
24 March 2010

http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/scotland/

The Commission in Scotland has welcomed new laws coming into force across Scotland today that will directly address how Scotland’s courts deal with the perpetrators of hate crime. However the Commission has warned that until further action is taken to address the behaviour and rehabilitation of hate crime offenders, we will still have a long way to go before we can call a halt to the harassment and harm that continues to blight the lives of many Scots.

The new law extends protection already in place for victims of violent crime motivated by their race or religion to LGBT and disabled people. Evidence shows these groups are significantly more likely to be targets for certain criminal acts simply because of who they are. Where it can be proven that an offence has been motivated by malice or ill-will based on the victim’s disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity, the court must take that motivation into account when determining sentence.

The Commission is currently conducting a formal inquiry looking at the extent of disability related harassment. A report on the safety and security of disabled people published by the Commission last year found that disabled people are four times more likely to be the victim of a crime than other people and are twice as likely to be the victim of a violent attack (see 1 ). In addition, two thirds of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Scotland report being verbally abused or threatened and over a third report being physically attacked on the basis of their presumed sexual orientation.
Morag Alexander, Equality & Human Rights Commission Scotland Commissioner welcomed the Act but warned that legislation on its own is not enough:

'We know that disabled people and those from Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender communities face often daily harassment and abuse just because of who they are. Today the implementation of this Act sends a clear message that it is not acceptable. However, legislation on its own is not the magic solution. Alongside education campaigns in our classrooms and sentencing in our courtrooms we need to plug the gap that currently exists when it comes to changing the behaviour and attitudes of the small minority of people in Scotland who are responsible for inflicting such harm.'
The Commission has undertaken an international study of programmes aimed at rehabilitating people convicted of hate crimes and found that there are no national programmes of this kind in the UK, despite:

record levels of reporting of racially motivated crime in Scotland (just under 4, 500 racial incidents being recorded by Scottish forces in 2007/8 ) (see 2) and
record levels of court proceedings (88% of all racially motivated crime in Scotland was prosecuted in 2007-08) (see 2)

These figures show a clearly recognised need to intervene to prevent re-offending and to limit further damage caused by prejudiced offenders to individuals, to their communities or to themselves.
(1) Safety and security for disabled people
(2) Summary of Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service Race Crime Statistics (external site)

The Commission is undertaking an inquiry into disability related harassment and how well this is currently being addressed by public authorities. We will be gathering evidence of disability related hate crime. If you have been subjected to harassment or verbal or physical abuse, please contact the commission helpline : 0845 604 6610

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