Amnesty: police discriminate

The Dutch police is guilty of discrimination during routine checks, according to Amnesty International. For example, during traffic controls or identity checks the police are more likely to pick immigrants than natives. This 'ethnic profiling' is a form of discrimination and therefore a breach of human rights, according to Amnesty.

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Amnesty International researched the random checks the police perform. Ethnic minorities are perceived as a suspect quicker than natives, state Amnesty director Eduard Nazarsky. It damages the relationship between the police and ethnic minorities, and eventually impairs the effectiveness of the police.

Amnesty International believes the government and the police must recognize that ethnic profiling exists and they should address it. Police officers in training should be made aware of it.

In a response the National Police admits there will most certainly be incidents, but it is not structural. Police chief Gerard Bouman stated the  essence of police work is to distinguish between right and wrong.

The considerations officers make on the street are related to many factors such as location, time or age, but also the appearance and behavior of suspects or for example the type of vehicle.