HC-POL-DATA: Expanded, systematic hate crime data collection and reporting of the Austrian Police
The project (EU Grant Agreement Nr. 847659 HC-POL-DATA) aims to improve the recording of derogatory bias motives in criminal charges on a scientific basis. According to the permanent case law of the European Court of Human Rights on Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (prohibition of discrimination) as well as the EU Victim Protection Directive, bias-motivated crimes in the sense of "group-focused enmity", for which the term "Hate Crime" has become established internationally, are to be made visible and comprehensively documented statistically by the member states.
In Austria, hate crimes are currently recorded exclusively within the framework of ideologically or religiously motivated crime — especially with regard to right-wing extremism.
Against this background, the project is intended to support the organs of the public security service in better implementing the international obligations. This is to be achieved by offering technical solutions for data recording, by training police staff and by communicating with civil society institutions.
The IRKS accompanies this process as a scientific partner, among other things by means of international comparative studies on data collection, systematic observations of the implementation process and a comparison of the collected figures with other data sources (also on the dark figures).
Funded by
European Commission/Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020)
Project Period
July 2019 to June 2021
Project Partner
Austrian Ministry of the Interior
Project Team
Walter Hammerschick & Walter Fuchs