Concerns raised by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) about a police policy which aims to combat racial discrimination but which the Roma group says could lead to stereotyping are unfounded, the National Police Headquarters (ORKF) said in a statement on Thursday.
The ERRC earlier expressed concern in a letter to Minister of the Interior Sandor Pinter and National Police Captain Jozsef Hatala about a multicultural policy approved by the police on December 30.
The Budapest-based ERRC wrote Tuesday that it welcomed the intention to “act constructively in a multicultural environment,” but it said the police policy was unclear in many ways and could lead to stereotyping and discrimination.
The ORKF statement said the Roma organisation had failed to take into consideration police efforts to exclude the possibility of stereotyping and discrimination. Hatala said the ERRC worries were based on a misunderstanding, and he wanted to dispel any worries that the policy could harm or disadvantage any minority.
