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Hate crimes in UK railway networks rising

A new report says that race hate crimes on Britain’s railway networks have risen by 37% in the past five years.

A new report has revealed that race hate crimes on Britain’s railway networks have risen by 37% in the past five years. This means an average of more than five reported incidents of abuse or harassment a day.

According to the report by the British transport police (BTP), covering railway services in England, Scotland and Wales, including London underground, recorded 1,993 hate crimes in 2015, an average of 5.5 per day. The crimes have been racially or religiously motivated.

The report also noted that excluding incidents where the race of the victim was not stated, more than three-quarters of incidents recorded in 2015 involved non-white victims: 36% were perpetrated against black victims, 33% against those of Asian origin, 3% involved mixed-race victims and 3.5% were against those of another race.

BTP went on saying that the number of race hate crimes resulting in a prosecution fell between 2011 and 2015, from 704 to 663.

Meanwhile, most of the hate crimes last year were carried out by white people, who accounted for 73% of suspects. In 2015, black suspects accounted for 17% of incidents where the race of the suspect was stated, compared with 14% in 2011.

The most common type of hate crimes recorded in 2015 involved racially or religiously motivated harassment, alarm or distress.

Muslims have always been among the main victims of hate crimes across the UK.

According to statistics by Metropolitan Police, Muslims in London faced a 70% increase in Islamophobic attacks in 2014-15.

A total of 816 hate crimes against Muslims had been recorded in the 12 months to July 2015. The number stood at 478 over the same period in 2013-14.

Islamophobic offences are defined by Met “as any offence which is perceived to be Islamophobic by the victim or any other person.” Anti-Muslim attacks range from cyber-bullying and assaults to extreme violence.


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