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Fundamental Rights Conference 2009 EU-MIDIS: European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey FRA InfoPortal Respect Unlimited - Diversity day 2009 European Year 2009 - Creativity and Innovation Swedish Presidency of the European Union
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EU-MIDIS at a glance

An overview of the whole European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey


Key Findings

► Racist crime, harassment and discrimination grossly under-reported

High levels of discrimination, racist crime and victimisation
The ethnic minority and immigrant groups interviewed described high levels of discrimination, racist crime and victimisation in their Member States on the basis of ethnic origin.

Pourcentage of unreported racist crimes


The survey reveals that discrimination, harassment and racially motivated violence are far more widespread than recorded in official statistics. Most of the minority groups surveyed in EU-MIDIS considered that discrimination on the basis of ethnic or immigrant origin was widespread in the Member State where they were interviewed. More than a third of the respondents stated that they had been personally discriminated against in the past 12 months. 12% experienced a crime that they felt was racially motivated, with 4% experiencing a racially motivated physical assault or threat of physical violence.

What can policy-makers do about this?

  • The data from this survey offers the possibility to develop targeted and evidence-based policy responses.
  • The data also calls for the introduction of adequate mechanisms for reporting and recording discrimination and racist crime to enhance evidence-based policy development.

► Poor rights awareness and sense of resignation among minorities and migrants

Resignation among minorities
The results suggest a sense of resignation among ethnic minorities and immigrants who lack confidence in the mechanisms designed to protect victims of discrimination or racist crime. The main reason given for not reporting incidents was that respondents felt that nothing would happen following their complaint.

 

Lack of rights awareness
The survey presents worrying evidence of the extent to which groups who are most vulnerable to discrimination in the EU are uninformed about where to turn to for assistance, if they have been discriminated against. 80% of the respondents did not know of any organisation that could offer support or advice to victims of discrimination. This demonstrates an urgent need for better information, but could also reflect a real absence of effective support services in many Member States.

What can policy-makers do about this?

  • Invest resources to make those who are vulnerable to discrimination aware of where they can turn to for support and advice.
  • Allocate resources to organisations that are tasked with offering assistance to people who have been discriminated against.
Encourage those who have been discriminated against or harassed to report their experiences to a competent authority in the knowledge that their complaints will be taken seriously.

Download

EU-MIDIS at a glance (22/04/2009) EU-MIDIS_GLANCE_EN


News

EU-MIDIS at a glance:
Printed version in English (EN) available.
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Last update 7/12/2009
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