Police need to do better in handling citizens' complaints: Ombudsman

The police still sometimes ignore citizens' complaints, handle them too lightly, or aren't open about what will happen with a complaint. Improvement is needed, National Ombudsman Reinier van Zupthen said after analyzing the police's complaints departments, ANP reports.

The police need to improve personal contact with citizens' after receiving their complaint. Complaints deserve attention and should not be dismissed too easily, the Ombudsman said. If a complaint is not going to be dealt with, the police must give a clear reason for this.

"I see that the police want to and must take steps to bring the complaint handling to the desired level. A lot is going well, many complaints are dealt with satisfactorily by the police. But there are also points for improvement," the Ombudsman said.

Van Zutphen called on the police leaders to "further propagate the value of complaint handling within the organization and to give their complaint handlers room for professional complaint handling.