Hate crimes reported to the police decreased

Last year, the number hate crimes recorded by the police fell by some 20 per cent from the 2011 figures. Research by the Police College of Finland indicates that reports of 732 suspected hate crimes were filed in 2012.

A total of 641 had racist aspects. The most common type of crime was assault.

The Criminal Code of Finland does not specifically define the concepts of racist crime and hate crime. A hate crime is generally taken to mean any criminal act against an individual or group, or their personal property or institutions, motivated by prejudice or hostility against their real or perceived ethnic or national background, religious conviction or outlook, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or disability.

Hate crime statistics are based on police national crime report data. According to Tero Tihveräinen, Researcher at the Police College of Finland, only a small percentage of hate crimes are reported to the police.

The Police College has been monitoring the number of suspected hate crimes in the current form since 2008.

For more information: Police College of Finland, www.policecollege.fi, tel. +358 71 878 0121