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Hate crime op on Tube

by Mark Rowe

Transport for London (TfL) and London police ran over 200 community engagement events across the city in support of National Hate Crime Awareness Week.

The activity began on Monday, October 16 with police officers, TfL staff and representatives from TellMAMA, a reporting service for victims of anti-Muslim hate crime. Officers visited communities in East London to stress the importance of reporting hate crime and to reassure them that London’s public transport system is safe and welcoming for all. Officers also made visits to the East London Mosque, Stratford bus station and travelled on a route 25 bus between Whitechapel and Stratford.

The authorities say that reports of hate crime offences have increased as more people feel confident to speak out about incidents. Between April and June 2017, reports of hate crime on increased by 25 per cent compared with the same period last year (822 reports compared to 655).

Last year, TfL, British Transport Police (BTP), the Metropolitan (Met) and City of London Police (COLP) forces launched Operation Safer Travel for All and the #WeStandTogether campaign, which aims to reassure the travelling public that the network is safe and to encourage anyone who experiences this type of behaviour to report it.

Sophie Linden, Deputy Mayor for Policing And Crime said: ‘Hate crime of any kind has no place in London, and the Mayor has been clear that the Met police should take a zero-tolerance approach to it. We all need to work together to tackle these awful crimes, so its great that Transport for London and the police are joining forces and reaching out to communities around the capital during National Hate Crime Awareness Week, working to ensure everyone feels safe travelling on our transport network. We continue to work with the Met, communities, schools and local authorities to drive down these crimes, and are investing in improved services for victims of hate crime. I encourage Londoner’s to get involved in National Hate Crime Awareness Week, and urge anyone who witnesses or suffers this abusive behaviour both online and in person to report it so we can take action, support victims and bring perpetrators to justice.’

And Steve Burton, Director of Enforcement and On-Street Operations, said: ‘Hate crime has no place in the capital, and public transport is no exception. By speaking to local communities we want to reassure people that public transport is safe and welcoming for all. Every report of hate crime will be taken seriously and fully investigated.’

How to report

People can report an incident discreetly by texting 61016 from a mobile phone (for Tube and rail incidents) or by calling 101. In an emergency they should call 999.

For anyone who feels uncomfortable speaking to the police about a Hate Crime incident, they can visit report-it.org.uk where reports can be submitted anonymously.

Anti-Muslim incidents can also be reported at: Tell MAMA on 0800 456 1226, WhatsApp 0734 184 6086 or at tellmamauk.org.

For anti-Semitic incidents, CST can be called on 0208 457 9999 or visit cst.org.uk.

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