Project Partners:
Ministries of the Interiors of Belgium, the Netherlands and NRW/Germany, University of Maastricht, University of Leuven, University of Applied Sciences and Public Administration Cologne.
EURIEC is a tri-national project between the Netherlands, Belgium and the North-Rhine Westfalia/Germany to tackle cross-border crimes with the administrative approach. EURIEC is a collaborative initiative of the ministries of the interieur of the three states. Maastricht University is involved in the project as by conducting a scientific evaluation of all activities implemented over the project’s life span.
Criminals intentionally use national borders in order to hide their activities from investigative and other authorities. The goal of the EURIEC team is to strengthen cross-border administrative collaboration between Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands by offering support in case studies, organising international expert platforms, by increasing awareness of the administrative fight against cross-border crime and by removing barriers.
On 17 May 2018, the RIEC Limburg, along with Belgian ARIECs and the competent authorities in North Rhine-Westphalia, was instructed to set up a Euro-regional Information and Expertise Centre to offer support for the administrative fight against cross-border organised crime, the EURIEC. This instruction was issued by means of a letter of intent that was signed by Jan Jambon (the former Minister for Security and Domestic Affairs in Belgium), Herbert Reul (the North Rhine-Westphalia Innenminister) and Ferdinand Grapperhaus (the Minister of Security and Justice in the Netherlands).
Protection of Hate Crime Victims in the European Union
Research Project for the Dutch Ministry of Justice, 2019
Hate crime victims involved in a criminal procedure experience difficulties that are different from problems encountered by other victims. In trying to meet the specific procedural needs of hate crime victims many EU Member States have introduced protective measures and services in criminal proceedings, but the adopted approaches are widely disparate. By reporting the results of an EU-wide comparative survey into hate crime victims within national criminal procedures the authors aim to: (1) make an inventory of the national (legal) definitions of hate crime and the protection measures available (on paper) for hate crime victims; and (2) critically discuss certain national choices, inter alia by juxtaposing the procedural measures to the procedural needs of hate crime victims to see if there are any lacunae from a victimological perspective. The authors conclude that the Member States should consider expanding their current corpus of protection measures in order to address some of the victims’ most urgent needs.
CrossBES was tri-national research project funded by the European Union on prisoner transfers and cross-border confiscations between the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. The objective of this project was to improve judicial cooperation in the field of Cross Border Execution of Sentences (CrossBES) between the three countries and other EU-countries, contribute to the effective and coherent application of the EU legal framework, strengthen mutual confidence, trust, recognition and the network of legal practitioners and to prevent convicted persons from abusing borders to escape punishment. To successfully execute sentences across borders, increase the level of reintegration of the convicted person into society, the sense of security and decrease impunity, it is imperative that neighbouring countries know each others’ and EU’s possibilities, limitations and structures in this field. Building on “BES Practice”, the partners within the project created a network of practitioners and to improve the knowledge and cooperation in this field, by offering the practitioners the outcome of a comparative law study including the (new) EU framework decisions, three in-depth trainings and a practical guide being the roadmap on how to successfully execute sentences across borders. |
Research Project
EU Horizon 2020 Research Project
Understanding human security in post-conflict areas is at the core of this project. Where conventional, top-down police reforms fail, Community-Based Policing (COP) holds promise – but also entails challenges. Post-conflict societies, although they vary in most respects, have something in common: public institutions are considered weak and untrustworthy. This is true for policing institutions as well. Abuse of policing powers, corrupt practices, and impunity are characteristics people often ascribe to their authorities. Meanwhile, conflicts have regional and global ramifications. Citizens everywhere are endangered by problems arising from conflict, such as human and drug trafficking, and terrorism.
Robin Hofmann conducted explorative research in Kosovo over the period of two years. The aim was to evaluate Community Oriented Policing in the region and to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of policing in post-conflict settings. A focus was on how new infromation communication technologies can be utilized to build stronger police-community relations and increase security. In an extensive practitioners handbook this research was transformed into a practical guidelines for police reform initiatives. Find out more about the research here.