CIJA welcomes establishment of RCMP task force
CIJA welcomes the establishment of an RCMP task force to create standards for the investigation of hate crimes.
CIJA welcomes the establishment of an RCMP task force to create standards for the investigation of hate crimes
Toronto, ON – Upon learning that the RCMP will announce a task force that will work to create Canada’s first official standards for investigating hate crimes, an area of policing the Mounties acknowledge needs improvement, Shimon Koffler Fogel, President and CEO, issued the following statement:
“CIJA welcomes the establishment of an RCMP task force to create standards for the investigation of hate crimes, something we asked for during last summer’s National Summit on Antisemitism hosted by Prime Minister Trudeau. Statistics Canada data released last week show that hate crimes are at record levels indicating an urgent need for action. This is an important and encouraging step forward.
“The Jewish community, which is 1% of the Canadian population, was the target of 62% of all hate crime targeting religious minorities in Canada. While the latest Statistics Canada data show a 16% decline in hate crime targeting religious groups, hate crime targeting Jewish Canadians increased by 5%.
“We are grateful that police services across the country take hate incidents seriously, but more can and must be done to address this alarming trend. We look forward to supporting the RCMP’s initiative, which we hope will build on the important review of hate crime policies, practices, and challenges conducted by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police.”
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