Rights & Principles
Crime Victimisation
Crime victimisation can have many different impacts.
Research has been pointing to how it can affect the perceived quality of life, mostly on a temporary basis, especially in the cases of violent incidents, disrupting a variety of roles and building trauma (Hanson, Sawyer, Begle & Hubel, 2010).
Consequently, victimisation is often associated with five broad categories of needs:
Respectful treatment and recognition
Protection from intimidation, retaliation and further harm
Immediate support and in the long term
Access to justice and rights
Compensation and restoration
Victim
A natural person who has sufffered harm, including physical, mental or emotional harm or economic loss caused directly by a criminal offence.
Family members of a person whose death was caused directly by a criminal offence and who have sufffered harm as a result of that person’s death.
Key Features
Defining Victimisation
→ Suffering from harm related to a criminally sanctioned offence;
→ Recognition and respect;
→ Access to justice, support and protection.
Victims Rights
Access to Justice, Support and Protection
Provision of information and support
Participation in criminal proceedings
Special needs
When it comes to specific rights, and following the Victims Rights Directive (Directive 2012/20/EU), the following are emphasised:
→ Right to understand and to be understood;
→ Right to receive information from the competent authority;
→ Right to receive information;
→ Right to interpretation and translation;
→ Right to access victim support services.
→ Right to be heard;
→ Right in the event of a decision not to prosecute;
→ Right to safeguard in context of restorative justice services;
→ Right to legal aid;
→ Right to reimbursement of expenses;
→ Right to the return of property;
→ Right to decision on compensation.
Together, these rights showcase the EU key concerns in ensuring secondary or repeat victimisation is avoid to the extent possible.
Nevertheless, the 2012 Victims’ Directive also includes some articles for practitioners:
Training
→ Awareness of victims’ needs.
→ Approaching victims with impartiality and respect.
→ Professional standards and non-discriminatory treatment.
Services cooperation & coordination
→ Exchange best practices and consultation in individual cases.
→ Coordinated and online efforts to raise awareness and reduce victimisation risks.
How effective has its implementation been so far?
Priorities
EU Victim Strategy
More recently, and recognising victims’ rights as an EU priority, the EU put forward the EU Victim Strategy, which was developed in 2020, and extends to 2025.
The strategy relies on two main pillars, namely:
Empowerment
Cooperation
Effective communication with victims and a safe environment for victims to report crime
Improve support and protection to the most vulnerable victims
Facilitate victims’ access to compensation
Strengthen cooperation and coordination among all relevant actors
Strengthen the international dimension of victims’ rights
Together, these rights showcase the EU key concerns in ensuring secondary or repeat victimisation is avoid to the extent possible.
Hate Crimes
Reporting & Victim Support
According to the EU, in some cases, victims can be considered especially vulnerable, including those victims of hate crime and terrorism related incidents.
What does this mean?
Victims can be especially vulnerable due to the greater impacts of the crime, the greater difficulties and challenges in going through the criminal proceedings, or if they face greater possibilities of secondary and re-victimisation.
A New Approach
Restorative Justice
Restorative justice empowers victims and gives them a voice, allowing them to have a greater role in the process.
Key aspects of restorative justice, hate and extremism:
Hate and extremism are often manifestations of perceived injustices, exclusion and oppression
as often seeking for emotional engagement and belonging act as motivators to engage in extremist settings.
The harm caused by hate and extremism is complex
and can be felt at the individual, collective and social levels. The nature of extremism and hate make the response to the typical question “Why me?” far more challenging.
The traditional criminal justice system response is punitive
focusing on the person who caused the harm, building a sense of injustice.
By failing to provide more comprehensive responses
enrolling both psychological and societal structures, support and recovery are hindered.