Global Forum on Migration and Development
Published on the Global Forum on Migration and Development Web Portal (https://www.gfmd.org)


Date Shared: 
Monday, October 14, 2019 - 15:05
Title: 

Everyone’s Police

Countries and areas: 
Netherlands
Partner(s): 
The City of Amsterdam
Tags: 
Migrants in Vulnerable Situations, Diversity, Inclusiveness and Social Cohesion, Irregular Migration
Summary: 

At the city level, Amsterdam has adopted a program called “Everyone’s Police”, which encourages the reporting of crimes in the interest of more effective policing and community engagement. To reach undocumented residents, the police organizes monthly information sessions. A safe reporting policy based on the Amsterdam model has been rolled out nationwide to encourage people who are undocumented to approach the authorities to report crimes and to promote trust.

The Amsterdam police organizes dialogues with undocumented migrants to get to know their needs concerning safety and security. This can be if they are the victim of a crime but also if they are the witness of a crime. The aim is to ensure access to justice to all victims of crime, tackle impunity of perpetrators and increase trust in the police. The city also disseminates a small card, explaining how undocumented migrants can safely report to the police, in different languages in migrant communities. In addition, it is very important to keep training police officers to be aware of everyone’s right to report safely. The City reports that it has seen that more people are coming forward independently now to report crimes and that trust has increased.

In 2016, a safe reporting policy based on the Amsterdam model was rolled out nationwide in the Netherlands to encourage people who are undocumented to approach the authorities to report crimes and to promote trust.

GFMD Source: 

GFMD 2019 - Background Paper RT 1.2 "Facilitating social and economic inclusion"

Link: 

For more information:

  • http://paspoortamsterdam.nl/politie-en-aangifte-doen/ (in Dutch)
  • https://www.picum.org/Documents/Publi/2018/
  • ...

Source (retrieved on 12/28/2025 - 13:34): https://www.gfmd.org/pfp/ppd/11501