Hands Off campaign

POLICE used the recent Disability Action Exhibition Show in the Waterfoot Hotel to raise awareness of hate crime and promote the ‘Hands off My Friend’ and ‘Unite against Hate’ campaigns.

Inspector Tony Callaghan explains: “Reporting hate incidents can make a difference. By fully realising the issues that are present in our communities we are better able to direct our resources to making lives better for victims.

“Some of the reasons behind underreporting include a lack of confidence in police, fear of becoming involved, fear of going to court or fear of reprisal. By working with our partner agencies and putting in place systems that allow people to report such incidents we can improve confidence among victims and make a real difference.”

There are a number of ways to report a hate incident if you do not want to contact the police directly. Hands off My Friend has a free phone number, 0800 0320788 and a web site, www.handsoffmyfriend.org where crimes can be reported.

Any individual can report a hate crime or incident to a third party reporting agency. A list is available on the website.

The phone number will provide a recorded message and the opportunity to leave details of any hate crime or incident that is experienced as a witness or victim. These details will be passed to PSNI for collation and investigated where possible.

Reporting agencies can also provide victims and witnesses with information and contact details for support organisations.

The campaign is supported by the PSNI, Derry City Council, Limavady Borough Council, Magherafelt District Council and Strabane District Council along with, SEEDS and Foyle Multicultural Forum.