Law made simple
Victims of crime and violence deserve special support. Given the large number of support services, however, it can be difficult to find a suitable contact in any individual case. To help make things easier, the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection implements the 2018-2021 coalition agreement envisaging the creation of a central information platform on victim support. The wirksam regieren Division is supporting this Federal Government project by feeding the victims’ perspective into the process to create this platform. Interviews were carried out to identify the needs of the various groups affected and ascertain how these can best be addressed by the information platform.
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victim support
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Victims of crime and violence should get adequate support
Victims of crime and violence deserve special support from society. This includes easy access, as direct as possible, to information and support services. There are a large number of such services in Germany, but they are run by numerous actors and so are not always easy to find. That is why, in its coalition agreement, the Federal Government said it aimed to make information and support services in the field of victim support and protection better known by means of an information-campaign. To this end, the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection plans to set up a central information platform on victim support and protection which brings together in one place the many existing services.
A range of information which takes account of the special situation of those affected
The aim is to set up an information platform on victim support and protection which takes account of the special needs of victims of crime and violence. To this end, a large number of interviews were carried out to ascertain the most important information and support services, the typical ways in which information is found and used, and the language needed for target-group-specific services.
The interviews have revealed numerous particularities regarding the information needs of victims of crime and violence, ranging from linguistic requirements and the structuring of information to the substantive criteria covering the selection of suitable services.
The results will feed into the design of the central information platform on victim support and protection in order to ensure that the services on offer meet the needs of those affected.
on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection (BMJV)