Addressing hate crime on the Costa Almeria

LEARNING how to identify and respond to hate crimes in the province was top of the agenda at a meeting organised by the Guardia Civil.
Staged in the municipal Music, Dance and Theatre School in El Parador de las Hortichuelas in Roquetas de Mar, in collaboration with the local council, the event was attended by Guardia Civil and Local Police officers, and also by members of various provincial associations.
They included organisations for immigrants, the gypsy community, people with Asperger’s and for persons with a disability.
The initiative came under an Interior Ministry plan to deal with the issue of hate crime, prompted, acting Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska has commented, because “unfortunately there still exists criminal behaviour motivated by hate and intolerance, which limits dignity and puts at risk the freedom and development of people in equal conditions and opportunities.”
The meetings aim to update professionals on the issue and make them more aware of the early signs with a view to preventing hate crimes and to ensuring a quick response when acts constitute a crime.
The gathering in Roquetas ended with a roundtable discussion, which gave association representatives an opportunity to relate their first-hand experiences and give their views on the problem, as well as to stress to the professionals the need to have direct channels of communication.