Police are to step up their presence in pubs and clubs throughout the north-east following a surge in racist crimes, the Press and Journal can reveal.
The move comes as new figures show the number of racist incidents in Grampian has soared over the last five years and there have been almost 2,000 cases since 2003.
In the last year, Grampian Police have had to deal with 462 incidents – a sharp increase from the 275 it dealt with in 2003-04.
Last night, a north-east MSP said the “hugely concerning” figures could be a sign of growing racial disharmony in many communities.
Across Grampian, the number of recorded incidents has grown in each of the last five years. In Aberdeen, incidents have risen from 198 in 2003-04 to 279, 284, 312 and finally 321 in 2007-08.
It is a similar picture in Aberdeenshire, where incidents have shot up from 50 in 2003-04 to 70, 78, 95 and 96 last year.
In Moray, race-related crimes have risen from 27 to 35, 52 and 53 in 2006-07. However, there was a slight drop to 45 incidents in the last year.
Grampian Police revealed last night that they are to launch an anti-racism campaign in pubs and clubs at the end of the month to try to curb the problem.
The force said there was no single reason for the rise but pointed to increased public confidence in the police and the growing number of people from ethnic minorities moving to the area as major factors.
Chief Inspector Adrian Berkeley said: “Wherever a trend is identified through regular, careful monitoring, steps are taken to address the issue.
“A considerable number of incidents take place in licensed premises, often late at night. The response to this is an anti-racism campaign, with posters and stickers which will be displayed in shops and licensed premises and a higher-profile policing presence.
“This campaign, run in conjunction with the Grampian Racist Incident Partnership Group and supported by the local authority licensing boards, will begin later in May.
“The force has also worked hard to bring the perpetrators of hate crime to justice, and the force detection rate for such crimes in 2007-08 was 67%.”
Labour MSP Richard Baker felt the massive rise in the number of migrant workers living in the north-east could be behind the figures.
“This rise in race-related crimes is hugely concerning and this might be evidence of growing racial tensions in Grampian,” he said.
“It may be partially because the police are having greater success in detecting these crimes but that itself cannot explain the figure nearly doubling.
“There has been an increase in people from eastern Europe moving into the north-east and they may account for some of the increase in these crimes but, given the great contribution these people make to our local economy, it would be extremely worrying if they were deterred from working in our area in the future.”
One notable case was last July when 11-year-old Polish boy Robert Strazek was assaulted outside his home at St Ninian’s Court, Seaton, Aberdeen, in an attack police described at the time as racially motivated.
The youngster said he had been the target of racial insults before being punched and kicked repeatedly while playing with friends. A youth has since been reported to the Children’s Panel.
Jeannie Felsinger, director of the Grampian Racial Equality Council, said many more incidents went unreported. “As with nearly all crime, there is significant under-reporting of racist incidents and crime,” she said.
“The fact that there has been an increase in the number of crimes reported is largely due to the efforts of the police and public bodies in raising awareness amongst the general population.”