Artikelen bij COM(2023)424 - Wijziging van Richtlijn 2012/29/EU tot vaststelling van minimumnormen voor de rechten, de ondersteuning en de bescherming van slachtoffers van strafbare feiten - Hoofdinhoud
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| dossier | COM(2023)424 - Wijziging van Richtlijn 2012/29/EU tot vaststelling van minimumnormen voor de rechten, de ondersteuning en de bescherming ... |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2023)424  |
| datum | 12 juli 2023 |
Inhoudsopgave
Article 1
(1)the following Article is inserted:
‘Article 3a
Victims’ helpline
1.Member States shall take the necessary measures to establish easily accessible, user friendly, free of charge and confidential victims’ helplines which:
(a)provide victims with the information referred to in Article 4(1);
(b)offer emotional support;
(c)refer victims to specialised support services and/or specialised helplines if needed.
2.Member States shall ensure the provision of helplines referred to in paragraph 1 through a telephone helpline connected to the EU harmonised number “116 006” and through other information and communication technologies, including websites.
3.Member States shall take appropriate measures to ensure the availability of the services referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 in other languages, including at least the languages most used in the Member State.
4.Helplines may be set up by public or non-governmental organisations and may be organised on a professional or voluntary basis.’;
(2)the following Article 5a is inserted:
‘Article 5a
Reporting of crime
1.Member States shall ensure that victims can report criminal offences to the competent authorities through easily accessible, user friendly information and communication technologies. Such possibility shall include submission of evidence where feasible.
2.Member States shall take the necessary measures to encourage any person who knows about or suspects, in good faith, that criminal offences have been committed, or that further acts of violence are to be expected, to report this to the competent authorities.
3.Member States shall ensure that victims can effectively report crimes committed in detention facilities. Detention facilities shall include in addition to jails, detention centres and holding cells for suspects and accused, specialised detention facilities for applicants of international protection and pre-removal centres, and accommodation centres where applicants and beneficiaries of international protection are located.
4.Where children report criminal offences, Member States shall ensure that the reporting procedures are safe, confidential, designed and accessible in a child-friendly manner and use language in accordance with their age and maturity.
5.Member States shall ensure that the competent authorities coming in contact with a victim reporting crimes are prohibited from transferring personal data pertaining to the residence status of the victim to competent migration authorities, at least until completion of the first individual assessment referred to in Article 22.’;
(3)Article 8 is amended as follows:
(a)paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
‘2. Member States shall ensure that victims are contacted by the relevant general or specialised support services if the individual assessment referred to in Article 22 demonstrates the need for support and the victim consents to be contacted by support services or if the victim requests support.’;
(b)the following paragraph is added:
‘6. Victim support services shall remain operational in times of crisis, such as health crises, significant migratory situations or other states of emergency.’;
(4)Article 9 is amended as follows:
(a) in paragraph 1, point (c) is replaced by the following:
‘(c) emotional and, where available, psychological support once they become aware of a status of a person as a victim. If the special need for psychological support has been demonstrated by individual assessment referred to in Article 22, psychological support shall be available to victims in need of such support for as long as necessary.’;
(b) in paragraph 3, point (b) is replaced by the following:
‘(b) targeted and integrated support, including trauma support and counselling, for victims with specific needs, such as victims of sexual violence, victims of gender-based violence, including violence against women and domestic violence covered by Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council 64 [on combating violence against women and domestic violence], victims of trafficking in human beings, victims of organised crimes, victims with disabilities, victims of exploitation, victims of hate crime, victims of terrorism, victims of core international crimes.’;
(c) the following paragraph is added:
‘4. Member States shall provide the protection and specialist support services necessary to comprehensively address the multiple needs of victims with specific needs in line with the protocols referred to in Article 26a(1), point (c).’
(5)the following Article 9a is inserted in Chapter II:
‘Article 9a
Targeted and integrated support services for children
1.Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure the availability of child-friendly targeted and integrated specialist services for children to provide for age-appropriate support and protection necessary to comprehensively address the multitude of needs of child victims.
2.Targeted and integrated support services for child victims shall provide for a coordinated multi-agency mechanism that includes the following services:
(a)the provision of information;
(b)medical examination;
(c)emotional and psychological support;
(d)possibility of crime reporting;
(e)individual assessment of protection and support needs referred to in Article 22;
(f)video recording of testimonies referred to in Article 24(1).
3.The services referred to in paragraph 2 shall be provided within the same premises.’;
(6)the following Articles 10a and 10b are inserted:
‘Article 10a
Right to assistance at the court
Member States shall take the necessary measures to establish assistance at the court premises to provide information and emotional support to victims.
Article 10 - b Right to a review of decisions taken during court proceedings
1.Member States shall ensure that victims are informed without delay of decisions taken in court proceedings that affect them directly and have the right to a review of such decisions. Such decisions shall include at least decisions pursuant to the following provisions:(a)Article 7(1) in relation to decisions on interpretation during court hearings;
(b)Article 23(3).
2.The procedural rules under which victims may request a review of decisions referred to in paragraph 1 shall be determined by national law.
Member States shall ensure that the judicial decisions on the request of such a review are taken within reasonable time.’;
(7)Article 16 is amended as follows:
(a)paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:
‘1. Member States shall ensure that, in the course of the criminal proceedings, victims are entitled to obtain a decision on compensation by the offender, within a reasonable time.’;
(b)paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
‘2. Member States shall ensure that their competent authorities pay directly to the victim the adjudicated compensation without undue delay. The competent authorities shall be subrogated to the right of the victim in relation to the offender for the amount of the adjudicated compensation.’;
(8)Article 17 is amended as follows:
(a)in paragraph 1, point (b) is replaced by the following:
‘(b) to have recourse to the extent possible to the provisions on video conferencing and telephone conference calls to facilitate participation in criminal proceedings of victims who are resident abroad.’;
(b)the following paragraph is added:
‘4. Member States shall ensure that the competent authorities may request assistance from Eurojust and transmit to Eurojust the information aimed at facilitating cooperation with the competent authorities of other Member States in cross-border cases.’;
(9)in Article 21, the following paragraph is added:
‘3. Member States shall ensure that personal data concerning a victim allowing the offender to identify the victim’s place of residence or to otherwise contact the victim in any way is not provided to the offender either directly or indirectly.’;
(10)Article 22 is amended as follows:
(a)the title is replaced by the following:
‘Individual assessment of victims to identify specific support and protection needs’;
(b)paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:
‘1. Member States shall ensure that victims receive a timely and individual assessment, to identify specific support and protection needs and to determine whether and to what extent they would benefit from special measures provided for under Article 9(1), point (c), and Articles 23 and 24, due to their particular vulnerability to secondary and repeat victimisation, to intimidation and to retaliation.’;
(c)the following paragraph 1a is inserted:
‘1a. The individual assessment shall be initiated upon the first contact of the victim with the competent authorities, and shall last as long as necessary depending on the specific needs of each victim. Where the result of the initial stage of the individual assessment by the first contact authorities demonstrates the need to continue the assessment, such assessment shall be undertaken in collaboration with the institutions and bodies depending on the stage of the procedure and victims’ individual needs in accordance with the protocols referred to in Article 26a.’;
(d)paragraphs 2 and 3 are replaced by the following:
‘2. The individual assessment shall take into account:
(a)the personal characteristics of the victim, including relevant experiences of discrimination, also when based on a combination of several grounds such as sex, gender, age, disability, religion or belief, language, racial, social or ethnic origin, sexual orientation;
(b)the type or nature of the crime;
(c)the circumstances of the crime;
(d)the relationship to and the characteristics of the offender.
3. In the context of the individual assessment, particular attention shall be paid to:
(a)victims who have suffered considerable harm due to the severity of the crime;
(b)victims who have suffered a crime committed with a bias or discriminatory motive which could, in particular, be related to their personal characteristics;
(c)victims whose relationship to and dependence on the offender make them particularly vulnerable.
In this regard, victims of terrorism, organised crime, human trafficking, gender-based violence, including violence against women and domestic violence, sexual violence, exploitation or hate crime, victims of core international crime and victims with disabilities shall be duly considered. Particular attention shall be paid to victims who fall under more than one of those categories.’;
(e)the following paragraph 3a is inserted:
‘3a. In the context of the individual assessment, particular attention shall be paid to the risk emanating from the offender, including the risk of violent behaviour and of bodily harm, the use of weapons, involvement in a group of organised crime, drug or alcohol abuse, child abuse, mental health issues, behaviour of stalking, expression of threats or hate speech.’;
(f)paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:
‘4. For the purposes of this Directive, child victims shall be presumed to have specific support and protection needs due to their vulnerability to secondary and repeat victimisation, to intimidation and to retaliation. To determine whether and to what extent they would benefit from special measures as provided for under Articles 23 and 24, child victims shall be subject to an individual assessment as provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article. The individual assessment of child victims shall be organised within the framework of targeted and integrated support services referred to in Article 9a.’;
(g)paragraph 6 is replaced by the following:
‘6. Individual assessments shall be carried out with the close involvement of the victim and shall take into account their wishes including where they do not wish to benefit from special measures as provided for in Articles 8, 9 ,9a, 23 and 24.’;
(h)paragraph 7 is replaced by the following
‘7. Competent authorities shall update the individual assessment at regular intervals to ensure the support and protection measures relate to the victim’s changing situation. If the elements that form the basis of the individual assessment have changed significantly, Member States shall ensure that it is updated throughout the criminal proceedings.’;
(11)in Article 23, paragraph 2, point (d) is replaced by the following:
‘(d) all interviews with victims of sexual violence, gender-based violence including victims of violence against women and domestic violence covered by Directive (EU) …/… of the European Parliament and of the Council 65 [on combating violence against women and domestic violence], unless conducted by a prosecutor or a judge, being conducted by a person of the same sex as the victim, if the victims so wishes, provided that the course of the criminal proceedings will not be prejudiced.’;
(12)in Article 23, the following paragraph is added:
‘4. The following measures to ensure victims’ physical protection shall be available for victims with specific protection needs identified in accordance with Article 22(1) during criminal proceedings:
(a)continuous or temporary presence of law enforcement authorities;
(b)barring, restraining or protection orders to provide protection for victims against any acts of violence, including by prohibiting or restraining certain dangerous behaviour of the offender.’;
(13)in Article 24, the following paragraph is added:
‘3. Where the offence involves the holder of parental responsibility, or there could be any other conflict of interest between the child victims and the holder of parental responsibility, Member States shall take into account the best interest of the child and ensure that any act requiring consent is not conditional upon the consent of the holder of parental responsibility.’;
(14)the following articles are inserted in Chapter 5:
‘Article 26a
Protocols through national coordination and cooperation
1.Member States shall establish and implement specific protocols on the organisation of services and actions under this Directive by the competent authorities and other persons coming in contact with victims. The protocols shall be drawn up in coordination and cooperation between law enforcement, prosecution authorities, judges, detention authorities, restorative justice services and victim support services. The specific protocols shall aim as a minimum at ensuring that:
(a)victims receive information that is adapted to their changing individual needs; whereas such information shall be simple and easy to understand, provided in a timely manner, repeated over time, in multiple formats including orally, in writing and digitally;
(b)victims who are in detention including jails, detention centres and holding cells for suspects and accused, as well as specialised detention facilities for applicants of international protection and pre-removal centres or in other institutions, including accommodation centers where applicants and beneficiaries of international protection are located:
(i)receive the information about their rights;
(ii)can rely on facilitated crime reporting;
(iii)have access to support and protection in accordance with their individual needs;
(c)individual assessment of victims’ needs for support and protection as referred to in Article 22, and provision of support services for victims with specific needs, take into account the victims’ individual needs at different stages of the criminal procedure.
2.Member States shall ensure that the protocols referred to in paragraph 1 are reviewed at regular intervals to ensure their effectiveness, and at least once every two years.
3.Member States shall take the necessary legislative measures to allow for collection and sharing of information, including information containing personal data of victims between the competent authorities and victim support services to ensure access to information and appropriate support and protection of individual victims.
Article 26 - b Use of electronic means of communication
1.Member States shall ensure that victims of crime may exercise their rights provided for in Article 3a, Article 4(1), Article 5(1), Article 5a, Article 6(1), (2), (4), (5) and (6) and Article 10b using electronic means of communication.2.Victims of crime shall not be prevented from accessing or otherwise using national systems offering the electronic means of communication referred to in paragraph 1 on the basis that they are residents of another Member State.
3.Where national systems offering electronic means of communication require the use of electronic identification, signatures and seals, Member States shall allow the use of notified electronic identification schemes, qualified electronic signatures, and qualified electronic seals of any other Member States as provided for in Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council 66 .
Article 26 - c Rights of victims with disabilities
1.Member States shall ensure that victims with disabilities benefit on equal basis with others from electronic means of communication as referred to in Article 26b of this Directive by complying with the accessibility requirements set out in Annex I to Directive (EU) 2019/882 of the European Parliament and of the Council 67 .2.Member States shall ensure that victims with disabilities can access on equal basis with others, any procedure as well as the support services and protection measures covered by this Directive in line with the accessibility requirements set out in Annex I to Directive (EU) 2019/882.
Member States shall ensure that reasonable accommodation is provided for victims with disabilities upon request.
Article 26 - d Remedies
Member States shall ensure that victims have an effective remedy under national law in the event of a breach of their rights under this Directive.’;(15)the following Article 27a is inserted:
‘Article 27a
Specific obligations in relation to victims of violence against women and domestic violence
When Member States adopt the measures to comply with this Directive, they shall ensure that it is done without affecting the obligations under Directive (EU) …/… [on combating violence against women and domestic violence], which are applicable in relation to such victims in addition to the obligations set out in this Directive. In particular, Member States shall ensure that
(a)the victims’ helpline as referred to in Article 3a of this Directive does not affect the operation of dedicated and specialised helplines for victims of violence against women and domestic violence as required under Article 31 of Directive (EU) …/… [on combating violence against women and domestic violence];
(b)the obligation to take measures pursuant to Article 5a(2) of this Directive does not affect Member States’ obligation to take targeted measures to encourage the reporting of acts of violence against women or domestic violence set out in Article 16(1) of Directive (EU) …/… [on combatting violence against women and domestic violence];
(c)the obligation to take measures pursuant to Article 5a(3) of this Directive does not affect Member States’ obligation to take specialised measures to ensure the reporting of occurrences of violence against women or domestic violence in reception and detention centres set out in Article 35(4) of Directive (EU)…/… [on combatting violence against women and domestic violence];
(d)the obligation to take measures pursuant to Article 5a(4) of this Directive does not affect Member States’ obligation to take targeted measures under Article 16(4) of Directive (EU) …/… [on combatting violence against women and domestic violence];
(e)as regards victims of violence against women or domestic violence, the provisions of [Articles 18 and 19 of Directive (EU) …/… [on combating violence against women and domestic violence] shall apply in addition to the rules set out in Article 22 of Directive 2019/29, as amended by this Directive’
(f)the protocols on individual assessment of victims’ needs for support and protection as referred to in Article 26a in conjunction with Article 22 of this Directive do not affect Member States’ obligations to issue guidelines and establish dedicated mechanisms for victims of violence against women and domestic violence provided for in Article 23, point (b), and Article 40(2) of Directive (EU) …/… [on combating violence against women and domestic violence].’;
(16)Article 28 is replaced by the following:
‘Article 28
Provision of data and statistics
1.Each Member State shall take the necessary measures to establish a system for the collection, production and dissemination of statistics on victims of crime. The statistics shall include data relevant to the application of national procedures on victims of crime, including at least the number and type of reported crimes and the number, the age, sex of the victims and the type of the offence. They shall also include information on how victims have accessed the rights set out in this Directive.
2.Member States shall collect the statistics referred to in this Article on the basis of common disaggregation developed in cooperation with the Commission (Eurostat). They shall transmit this data to the Commission (Eurostat) every three years. The transmitted data shall not contain personal data.
3.The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights shall support Member States and the Commission in the collection, production and dissemination of statistics on victims of crime and in reporting on how victims have accessed the rights set out in this Directive.
4.The Commission (Eurostat) shall support Member States in the data gathering referred to in paragraph 1, including by establishing common standards on counting units, counting rules, common disaggregation, reporting formats, and on the classification of criminal offences.
5.The Member States shall make the collected statistics available to the public. The statistics shall not contain personal data.
6.The collection of data under paragraph 1 shall not affect the dedicated data collection under Article 44 of Directive (EU) …/… [on combating violence against women and domestic violence].’;
(17)Article 29 is replaced by the following:
‘Article 29
Reporting by the Commission and review
By [six years after adoption], the Commission shall submit a report on the application of this Directive to the European Parliament and the Council. The report shall assess the extent to which the Member States have taken the necessary measures to comply with this Directive, including the technical implementation.
The report shall be accompanied, if necessary, by a legislative proposal.’;
Article 2 - Transposition
When Member States adopt those measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.
2.Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main measures of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.
Article 3 - Entry into force
This Directive is addressed to the Member States in accordance with the Treaties.