Efforts to combat hate speech

There is little knowledge about hate speech, and the Ministry of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion will take steps to increase knowledge about hate speech in 2016. The Ministry has also begun work to systematically review measures, knowledge and research in this area. The review will provide a foundation for an overall assessment of the work to combat hate speech. The work to combat hate speech, discrimination and harassment must be seen in the context of work to prevent violent extremism.

The players who control online discussions etc. play a central role. Training on

"netiquette" is also important, not least for young persons. Norway can learn from the experiences of other countries that have come far with this work.

Democratic preparedness against racism and anti-Semitism (DEMBRA) is a project in the Government's work to combat anti-Semitism, racism and undemocratic attitudes.

DEMBRA is run by the Center for Studies of Holocaust and Religious Minorities. The Directorate of Education has asked DEMBRA to develop and execute an educational programme for schools to support the work to combat anti-Semitism, racism and antidemocratic attitudes.

The Action Plan against Radicalisation and Violent Extremism contains several relevant measures to combat hate speech. These include measure 24 to enhance the police's presence on the Internet, measure 25 to prevent discrimination, harassment and hate speech on the Internet, measure 26 to prevent hate rhetoric, measure 27 to increase knowledge about how to counteract undesirable experiences on the Internet, and measure 28 to improve efforts to prevent hate expressions and radicalisation on the Internet.

In 2014 and 2015, the Ministry of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion granted funds to the national campaign Stopp hatprat på nett [Stop hate speech online] which is affiliated with the Council of Europe's campaign Young people combating hate speech online. The funds are used for social meeting places and information work to support youths and groups that are more at risk of online harassment and discrimination than others. The campaign is a measure to reinforce the efforts of civil society to fight discrimination and make youths better able to recognise and respond to hate speech.

One of the aims of the course at the Norwegian Police University College,

Kulturforståelse og mangfold [Cultural understanding and diversity] is to increase students' competence on hate crime. The topic also occupies a central position in the University College's first degree in preventive police service. Oslo police district is one of four police districts, as well as the National Police Immigration Service, that works on the project

Trygghet og tillit – politiets arbeid i et multietnisk samfunn [Safety and trust – the work of the police in a multi-ethnic society]. The objective of the project is to increase trust between the police and the minority/immigrant population. Methods and measures that focus on dialogue

and meetings with the public will be developed in order to provide good service and fight crime.

The police's database of criminal cases contains a registration function that allows selection of cases where the motive is considered as being hate-related. Hate crime has been followed up in the Director of Public Prosecutions' objective and priority circular regarding review of criminal cases in 2015. On 1 September 2014, Oslo police district expanded the mandate of a group to investigate crime committed by youths that had been established at Manglerud police station. The group will investigate all hate crime cases at Oslo police district, and develop specialised knowledge and competence on such crime.

In 2015, the Ministry of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion, in conjunction with several other ministries, will initiate a study of Norwegians' attitudes towards Jews and other ethnic and religious minorities.

5 Good health for women and men

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Figure 5.1

Photo: Monica Strømdahl

Health is an important factor for all of us, and crucial to living a good life. Good health means opportunities for the individual and for society as a whole. High quality health and care services must be equally available to the entire population, irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, place of residence, age and ethnicity. This is part of the Government's aim to create a health service for the patient, centred on the needs of the patient.

As a dimension of health, gender is important for a number of reasons. In addition to the biological and physiological differences between women and men, role patterns, social inequality and use of health and care services affect women's and men's health and behaviour in different ways.

Central challenges relating to gender equality in the context of health, particularly that of women, will be addressed in this chapter. The disease picture is different for women and men, and the courses of some illnesses may take different forms. In the past, diseases that mainly affect men have received greater attention than diseases where the majority of sufferers are women, and more men than women used to be included in clinical trials. As a result, there may still be inadequate information about diseases that are more typical of women, and this may have a bearing on the efficacy of treatment on women in the case of diseases that affect both genders. Generally speaking, a broader gender perspective on health could render visible imbalances between women and men and lead to improved services for both women and men. Greater awareness of the different needs of women and men and the development of more gender-specific treatment could improve the quality of health and care services. This is an important step towards attaining the goal of equal health and care services for women and men.

The Ministry of Health and Care Services works along two axes to attain this goal.

The one axis focuses particular attention on disorders where either women or men are in the majority or have special difficulties. The other axis is designed to include the gender

perspective in all health and care sector activities to which it is relevant.

The health of women and men in Norway is generally good, but there are still challenges in some areas. The number of young women with psychological problems and chronic pain and fatigue conditions is growing. Women are over-represented in the sickness absence and disability statistics. It is important to examine the connection between work and health, and to strive to develop effective therapies and self-management programmes that can help optimise the functioning of women who are on sick leave or at risk of having to take sick leave or becoming disabled.

Men have a shorter life expectancy than women, and the mortality figures for a number of diseases that affect both genders are higher for men. Expectations regarding men's roles may influence men's attitude to illness, and how the health and care services relate to them. Young men are also over-represented when it comes to substance abuse problems and deaths due to accidents and suicide. It is very important to find effective therapeutic and preventive strategies to meet the health challenges where men are over-represented.

The relative numbers of elderly people in Norway will increase in the years ahead, and a large proportion of them will be women. This is particularly true of the oldest age groups. In order to meet the health challenges of the future, the health of the elderly needs to be

considered from the perspective of gender. The gender perspective is important in research, disease-prevention work, care and rehabilitation services and in the treatment of illness among the elderly.

A smaller percentage of women and men from immigrant backgrounds report that they are in good health than the population at large. Fewer women from immigrant backgrounds have assessed their health as good or very good compared with men from immigrant

backgrounds. The Government wishes to build further on Nasjonal strategi om innvandreres helse 2013–2017 [National strategy for immigrant health 2013–2017]. The strategy paves the way for building expertise on the special health problems of immigrant groups, and of the cultural and linguistic challenges that arise in meetings between patients from immigrant backgrounds and the health and care services.

The Government will:

 prioritise research on the health of elderly women, working life and health, and the health of minority women, within the framework of the Research Council of Norway's national strategy for women's health.

 learn more about the reasons for undesirable discrepancies in the health and care services provided for women and men in a lifetime perspective

 ensure that updated knowledge of men's and women's special needs is applied

 arrange for better prevention, diagnostics, treatment and self-management of diseases that lead to women being on long-term sick leaves and becoming disabled

 establish a free catch-up vaccination programme against human papillomavirus (HPV) for all girls/women up to the age of 26

 arrange for initiatives focusing on the health challenges of older women

 ensure that the gender perspective is better integrated into decision-making processes and the practical provision of health and care services

 ensure that the services are geared to the different needs of men and women

 ensure that any different effects for men and women are identified by developing and evaluating measures that can affect people's health.

In addition, the Government will

 ensure that the health and care services provide greater opportunities for active

participation in social and working life for young and older women with psychological and other health-related challenges

 work for early diagnosis and targeted services for men

 build further on Nasjonal strategi om innvandreres helse 2013–2017 [National strategy for immigrant health 2013–2017].