Organisation Response of Netherlands Police Academy to ruling by Netherlands Institute for Human Rights Written on Friday, January 10, 2025 The Netherlands Police Academy was shocked by the ruling of the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights (College voor de Rechten van de Mens) that the Police Academy was guilty of sexual harassment and had failed to deal properly with a complaint about the matter. The woman who filed the complaint was engaged in discussions with the Police Academy about providing training sessions as part of the Police for All programme. The woman experienced the behaviour of member of the Police Academy’s Executive Board and a Section Head of the Netherlands Police as harassment, due to the informal and even flirtatious tone. The woman filed a complaint about this to the Institute. As Leonard Kok, Director of the Police Academy, commented: 'Anything related to discrimination of any kind, including sexual harassment, goes right to the heart of our organization. So I take this ruling extremely seriously. This case shows that ensuring that everybody is treated with proper care is a very delicate matter. All the more so in the case of perceived discrimination. At the Netherlands Police Academy, everyone can be themselves and must feel safe. The sort of behaviour referred to in this complaint does not belong here.’ In response to this case, the Director had an extensive conversation with the member of the Executive Board concerned. Due to retirement, the board member no longer works at the Police Academy. The Academy cannot comment on any possible consequences for the Section Head, since the latter works not at the Police Academy but for the Netherlands Police. Police Professional Code of Conduct The Police Academy is part of the Netherlands Police. This means that the Police Professional Code of Conduct applies to all employees. This professional code is binding. Failure to comply with it leads to consequences. The code includes the following provisions: I refrain from any form of bullying, racism, discrimination, intimidation or sexual harassment, or unwelcome sexual attention. This also applies to statements or displays that could be viewed as such, and to conduct towards a person that could be experienced as unwelcome or hurtful by the other or by bystanders. I behave appropriately in my interactions with colleagues, regardless of whether these colleagues indicate that they do or do not tolerate my behaviour. This applies even more strongly in the case of colleagues in a relationship of authority or who are in a relationship of dependency to me. I consider the boundaries of what is acceptable, and the boundaries of others. This also applies to jokes that could be experienced as hurtful or inappropriate. The responsibility to think carefully about this in advance lies with the person who makes the joke or comment. Incidentally, the woman in question did not submit a formal complaint to the Police Academy. She did previously report the incident to the police, but the Police Academy had no role in the subsequent handling of the matter. The Police Academy and the Netherlands Police are currently preparing a joint formal statement to the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights in response to its ruling.