JUDGES should be encouraged to impose tougher sentences on people who commit racially motivated crimes, a new report recommends.
The study by Jennifer Schweppe and Dermot Walsh, of the Centre for Criminal Justice at the University of Limerick, also calls for the updating of incitement to hatred legislation so it can prosecute internet-generated racism, and the promotion of the Public Order Act and Offences against the Person Act as a means of prosecuting racist incidents. Gardaí are further advised to produce an annual report on racist incidents.
Launching the report, chairperson of the National Action Plan Against Racism (NPAR), Lucy Gaffney, commented: “While official statistics suggest low levels of racially motivated crime in Ireland relative to other EU countries, there is a clear upward trend of incidents of racism in this country.
“Moreover, with 420,000 foreign nationals now living, working and raising families in communities the length and breadth of Ireland, we must ensure that our criminal justice system is sufficiently robust and that our laws are rigorous enough to protect them against crimes where racism is a factor.”
She added: “As the NPAR enters its final weeks, I hope that the judiciary and the Gardaí will look at the practical recommendations contained in this report and move to implement them. In particular, simple measures such as the publication of an annual Garda report on the level of racist crime in Ireland would allow us an understanding of the level of the problem we face. It would also complement the good work the Gardaí are doing with immigrant communities on the ground.”
Philip Watt, director of the now-defunct National Consul-tative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism (NCCRI) and who oversaw the production of the report, added: “Racism remains a significant problem in Ireland. The criminal law has a key role in ensuring that victims of assault, harassment, criminal damage and incitement motivated by racism are protected. Strong legislation also sends out a message that racism is not acceptable in Ireland.
“In 2007 there were 180 incidents of racism reported to the gardaí, up from a figure of 66 incidents in 2004. Most accept there is considerable under-reporting and the problem is greater,” Watt concluded.
