Safe to be. Handbook

HATE CRIMES, HATE SPEECH, AND RESTORATIVE JUSTICE: THE BELGIAN EXPERIENCE Paul Borghs 97 Belgium has an extensive legal framework for punishing hate crimes and hate speech. The legal framework allows for alternative sanctions and restorative interventions. However, in practice it appears that little use is made of these options.

In this paper, we will first provide an overview of the legal framework in Belgium in relation to hate crimes and hate speech. This will be followed by an examination of the alternative sanctions and restorative interventions that are possible at the level of the prosecution and the courts. Then, based on aspects such as the case-law on LGBTI-related hate crimes and hate speech, we will determine the extent to which alternative sanctions and restorative interventions are being applied. Finally, we will look at the bottlenecks that are causing the underuse of alternative sanctions and restorative interventions and we will suggest ways of addressing them.