Cops won't be prosecuted for racism in WhatsApp group

Police officers in Rotterdam will not be prosecuted for racist remarks made on a WhatsApp group, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said on Tuesday. "The law stipulates that such statements are punishable only if made in public. That did not happen in this case, because the officers were in a private WhatsApp Group," the OM said.

The OM launched an investigation into five Rotterdam cops in July, after NRC reported about a WhatsApp group where police officers made racial slurs about ethically diverse people saying they want to "shoot" them. According to the newspaper, ethically diverse people were referred to as "kankervolk", "kutafrikanen" and "pauperallochtonen" - slurs that roughly translate to "cancer peoples", "cunt Africans", and "pauper immigrants".

According to the OM, that investigation showed that "some statements were certainly reprehensible and not appropriate for police officers." But as the statements were not made in public, the officers involved can't be prosecuted for them. "The police will investigate the matter further internally, however," the OM said.