02/07/2024
FSG Igualdad y Lucha contra la Discriminación
The State Security Forces and Corps investigated a total of 2 268 criminal offences and hate incidents in Spain in 2023, which represents an increase of 21.3% compared to 2022, according to the Report on the evolution of hate crimes in Spain 2023.
Hate crimes against Roma people have increased by 68%, according to the Report on the evolution of hate crimes in Spain 2023 presented by the Ministry of the Interior on 1 July.
The State Security Forces and Corps investigated a total of 2 268 criminal offences and hate incidents in Spain in 2023, which represents an increase of 21.3% compared to 2022, according to the Report on the evolution of hate crimes in Spain 2023.
Hate crimes due to racism and xenophobia, with 856 incidents, are the most numerous and represent 41.8% of the total number of criminal complaints. This is followed by hate crimes committed in the areas of sexual orientation and gender identity (522 incidents).
In terms of year-on-year variation, there was an increase in all areas, except for discrimination on grounds of illness, which recorded 11 incidents, the same as in 2022. Hate crimes against people with disabilities are the ones with the highest increase, 113% more than in the previous year. Antisemitic (77%) and anti-Roma (68%) hate crimes are also on the rise.
Cases of antigypsyism
In 2023, 37 cases of hate crimes against Roma were recorded, 15 cases more than in the previous year. Seventeen of these cases were in the area of internet and social media, i.e. cases of anti-Roma hate speech. Since the inclusion of the anti-Roma category in these reports in 2021, there has been a steady increase in the number of cases. Seventeen of the 37 recorded cases were clarified. As for the profile of Roma victims broken down by sex, 12 of them are men and 16 are women.
This increase in the number of anti-Roma cases can be interpreted in two ways: either because of a real increase in criminal acts of hatred against Roma people, or because of a greater awareness of Roma people when it comes to reporting these cases to the police and defending their rights. In the latter case, this would be a positive trend, given the high level of under-reporting among victims of hate crimes when it comes to reporting cases of this type.
For 20 years, Fundación Secretariado Gitano has been publishing annual reports on cases of discrimination and anti-Roma hate crimes, which reflect our work assisting the victims of these cases and in strategic litigation. Our experience confirms this twofold trend, that of an increasing number of cases every year and also that of a greater awareness of Roma people in reporting these cases, which are a serious violation of fundamental rights. Greater coordination between public prosecutors' offices, police services and organisations working to combat antigypsyism would be desirable in order to monitor these cases against Roma people in detail, to have access to all sentences, and to improve statistical data on antigypsyism.
In recent years there have been several improvements in the attention to these cases and in their visibility: the European Commission has been including anti-Roma in its monitoring cycles on hate speech and social networks for 4 years now, OSCE-ODIHR publishes its annual Hate Crime Report including this category, and the Spanish penal code already recognises this motive -antigypsyism- as a possible aggravating factor for a hate crime, or as part of illegal hate speech.
We appreciate the effort being made by the Spanish Ministry of the Interior in collecting and resolving these cases, and also in improving the quality of statistical data. Raising the profile of antigypsyism is essential to raise awareness in mainstream society of the persistence of these cases and their serious impact on Roma people, and to improve the assistance provided to victims by the police services. ← BACK TO MAIN ‘NEWS’ PAGE
