“Distance Learning Course on Hate Crime,” an online course designed for legal professionals , was launched today in Sarajevo, by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the Council of Europe’s Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) programme.
This course, the first step in launching a full online course designed to help lawyers, prosecutors and judges recognize and respond to hate crimes, will be piloted in Bosnia and Herzegovina and several other countries.
ODIHR Director Michael Georg Link, said: “Hate crimes send a message of rejection and hate to entire communities – a message that is hard to silence once released. Only a powerful response, notably from prosecutors, judges and other legal professionals, can break the cycle of violence that hate crimes can trigger. We take the threat hate crimes represent very seriously, which is why we have worked with our Council of Europe colleagues to prepare this course.”
The online course introduces the concept of hate crime, as well as legal responses to them. It examines hate crime laws and the international legal framework for addressing hate crime. This course also provides tailored information on national approaches to hate crime. Participants learn about the specific context of hate crimes in their country, including local laws and other tools available to them.
ODIHR’s collaboration with the Council of Europe’s HELP programme in creating this course is part of its latest efforts to counter hate crime. HELP provides a platform for development of online courses and teaching materials for legal professionals.