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Ard van der Steur (Photo: Rijksoverheid.nl/Wikimedia Commons)
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Ard van der Steur (Photo: Rijksoverheid.nl/Wikimedia Commons)
Friday, 12 February 2016 - 10:56
Police need training to handle domestic violence, says Justice Min.
All police officers should know how to deal with domestic violence reports - whether he works on the streets or behind a desk - and be able to act quickly and call in extra expertise if necessary, Minister Ard van der Steur of Security and Justice said to the lower house of Dutch Parliament on Thursday, news wire ANP reports.
The Minister thinks close cooperation between the police, Public Prosecutor and Veilig Thuis - an organization consisting of the advice- and reporting hotline for child abuse and the support center for domestic violence - is the first step to improving the approach to tackling child abuse and domestic violence. First aid staff and police officers in Amsterdam already received extra training in the area of domestic violence.
According to the Minister, last year there were signals from across the country that the number of concerns about police report to Veilig Thuis increased. "The corps leadership and I recognize that the quality of reports, particularly about domestic violence, must be increased", van der Steur said. The police are taking the problem seriously and already appointed a program manager for Domestic violence and child abuse.