Victims are no longer alone

Whenever a crime is com­mitted our attention tends to focus on two things: how the person responsible for the crime can be brought to justice and what measures can be taken to avoid the same crime from happening again.

Thanks to this law, we will no longer have victims of crime being given different or inferior treatment depending on who they are or where they come from- Simon Busuttil

We also have increasingly sophisticated rights for suspects who are investigated or charged with a crime. That is how it should be.

But in the process we often tend to forget about the needs and rights of victims of crime.

Do victims have any rights and should they?

In the European Parliament we have been discussing this question for a long time and our reply is a resounding yes. Victims too should have rights. So much so that last month we overwhelmingly adopted a new EU law on victims of crime.

This is a first for EU law. It is a milestone. Never before had there been an EU legislation granting rights to victims of crime.

I was proud to have voted in favour of this new law on your behalf.

We have agreed that victims of crime need to be able to rely on a set of basic rights that are common throughout the European Union. More so in the case of persons who become victims of a crime in another Member State which is not their home country.

For in such cases, their stressful situation can be exacerbated by problems of language, communication and misunderstanding on how different processes in different Member States work. All of these factors combined lead to feelings of abandonment and loneliness at a time when one is most vulnerable. Not to mention the potential financial costs involved.

The new law is not the be-all-and-end-all of victims’ rights.

But it is a start. A good start.

Because thanks to this law, we will no longer have victims being given different or inferior treatment depending on who they are or where they come from. All victims will be given the same assistance. And the level of support will not depend on whether one is a national of the EU country in which the crime was committed or not.

The law aims to protect the rights of the victims of a wide array of crimes ranging from victims of terrorism to victims of organised crime, hate crime, human trafficking, sexual violence, domestic violence and gender-based violence, among many others.

Moreover the law also covers family members of a person whose death was caused by a criminal offence and who have suffered harm as a result. Because, after all, even family members of a victim are themselves victims of the crime.

The law ensures that individual needs of the victims will be assessed. This assessment will take into account characteristics such as gender, age and religion. If the victim is a child, then the child’s best interests would be the primary consideration.

The law will also ensure that victims and their family members have access to free-of-charge and confidential victim support services from the moment the victim reports the crime until the time of the trial. Support services will include services such as psychological support. Specialist support services will also be set up for victims with specific needs, such as children and victims of gender-based violence.

The recurring problem of communication will also be addressed. Victims will have to be informed of their rights in a language that they understand. Moreover, interpretation and translation services will be made available to ensure that they can take an active part in the criminal proceedings, interviews and court hearings in a language they can understand.

There are over 20 different rights that are specifically mentioned in the law.

And these are afforded to all EU nationals regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age or political belief.

Of course no law can have an immediate, consoling effect on a victim of a crime, more so the most heinous crimes.

However, through this law, victims will no longer be left all alone. The emotional hardship will be somewhat softened thanks to a set of basic rules that provide for some comfort and assistance.

This law is good news for all of us.

After all, each and every one of us, as well as our loved ones, can become victims of a crime wherever we are in Europe from one moment to another.

If and when that happens, it is good to feel that you are not alone.

simon.busuttil@europarl.europa.eu

Dr Busuttil is a Nationalist member of the European Parliament.