Recently, the number of burglaries in Indian households have increased immensely. The victims and the community took to a peaceful protest last November. As a follow up of the protest the victims and the community members met the Mayor to express their angst and to look for solutions.
The alarmed Indian community has taken preventive measures and are also concerned about their safety and security. This is a trend across the Netherlands so it’s not a particular occurrence in the Eindhoven region. Interestingly, on a same night three Indian households were robbed across three municipalities (Eindhoven, Waalre and Valkenswaard). The burglar caught on security camera is the same person who orchestrated this crime in all three places. A couple of incidents took place in Veldhoven too, again Indian households. The angered victims feel vulnerable and violated.
Together the victims and community members organised a peaceful protest on 23 November. As a follow up, the municipality assured support. A delegation of victims and community members met the Mayor. The group briefed the plight of the Indian community and also were concerned whether the police pays adequate attention to burglary crimes. The victims pointed out that they are traumatised and moreover appalled to see these criminals are scot-free. At the same time, the victims pay the price, for eg being conscious about what they share on social media or being alert with passers-by on the streets as they wonder whether danger is lurking around their homes/streets.
Mayor Jeroen Dijsselbloem prudently invited the Police chief Jeroen Bronswijk to the meeting to get to solutions quickly. The Mayor patiently listened to the woes of the victims and community organisation representatives and suggested that there is enough evidence to consider this as a high impact crime. The police chief agreed to focus on solving this issue.
Focus on prevention, evidence based crime management and webinars in English to help the international community at large were the outcomes of the hour-long meeting. The Mayor empasised “I don’t want any community to feel targeted or victimised. Every resident has a right to feel safe”. Mayor Dijsselbloem also urged the community and to work closely with the wijk agents (neighbourhood police officers). He also stressed on the nature of the law enforcement in the Netherlands. He said that the police department prefers to work closely with neighbourhoods and communities. The community feels heard and are looking forward to solutions.
For Eindhoven News : Beena Arunraj
