Tore Bjørgo was one of the initiators to gather an international group of researchers to join forces casting light on the subject of counter-terrorism. Together with John Horgan he edited a volume Leaving Terrorism Behind. In this article he focuses on the push- and pull factors influencing the decision to dissent from terrorism. It also discusses the ways in which counter terrorism policies can influence these processes.

In dit artikel wordt ingegaan op het rapport ‘Slachtoffers en aansprakelijkheid’ en op de behandeling van het wetsvoorstel affectieschade in de Eerste Kamer naar aanleiding van het rapport. Tot slot zal worden stilgestaan bij een aantal vraagpunten. Alvorens hierop in te gaan, zal allereerst kort de achtergrond en de lange historie van het wetsvoorstel affectieschade worden besproken.

Filicide, the murder of a child by a parent, is a dramatic event. The gravity increases when the perpetrator resorts to committing or attempting suicide. It is assessed to what extent filicide-(para)suicides can primarily be understood as homicidal or suicidal behaviour, or as a separate category of lethal violence. Parents committing filicide-parasuicide differ from filicidal parents and other suicidal parents in sociodemographic, individual and offence-related characteristics. Filicide-(para)suicide seem to constitute a category of lethal violence, different from both filicides and parasuicides.

Na de uitbreiding en versterking van de rechten van vliegtuig- en treinpassagiers zullen ook de rechten van passagiers van schepen, autobussen en touringcars beter worden beschermd. De Europese Commissie heeft hiertoe in het najaar van 2008 twee voorstellen ingediend die voorzien in strengere regels en compensatie in geval van annulering en vertraging, bijstand aan personen met een beperkte mobiliteit en vergoedingen bij ongelukken. Met deze aan de luchtvaartverordening ontleende voorstellen worden de in de luchtvaartsector geldende passagiersrechten uitgebreid tot de andere vervoerssectoren. Het is echter de vraag of de doelstelling van Commissie, namelijk gelijke passagiersrechten voor alle vervoerswijzen, zal worden bereikt.

Vergoeding van inspanningen ter zake van huishoudelijke arbeid of verzorgingsactiviteiten staat de laatste tijd op de agenda van de Hoge Raad. In 1999 (Losser/De Vries) liet de Hoge Raad zich voor het eerst uit over de vergoeding ter zake van verzorgingsactiviteiten. Inmiddels heeft de Hoge Raad, na de uitspraken in 2003 (Krüter-Van de Pol/Wilton Fijenoord), 2005 (Pruisken/Organice) en juli 2008 (Bakkum/Achmea), nog twee loten aan de stam toegevoegd. Die uitspraken staan hier centraal.

This article reports the findings of a series of interviews with a juvenile judge, a public prosecutor and a judge who operates during the administration of the prison sentence. Their role is inquired as this appears in the practices of victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing and victim oriented initiatives during the implementation of the prison sentence. The interviews relate to developments in the Flemish and Brussels region of Belgium and took place against the background of previous findings from research and practice. First, the (legal) context in which public prosecutors and judges are entering into contact with restorative practices is presented. Their role in offering or starting up different types of mediation and conferencing are discussed into detail. Also, the way in which the victim can participate in the administration of the prison sentence is dealt with. As a next step, the role of public prosecutors and judges after mediation or conferencing has taken place is analysed. To which extent can or should they take the outcome of restorative or victim oriented practices into account in further decision making processes? Furthermore attention is given to the relevance and applicability of important restorative justice principles such as voluntary participation and confidentiality when the case goes through the criminal justice process. The article ends with some general evaluative findings on the attitudes and the support of legal professionals towards restorative justice and restorative practices.

In deze bijdrage wordt (kort) teruggeblikt op tien jaar NPP, waarin het doel was om het letselschadeproces te versoepelen en te bespoedigen. Aanvankelijk werd de verbetering vooral gezocht in de ontwikkeling van materiële normering, later kwam daar de procedurele normering van de Gedragscode Behandeling Letselschade (GBL) bij. De auteurs beschrijven de speerpunten van De Letselschade Raad voor de aankomende periode.

In Western languages those affected by crime are universally labelled as the sacrificed ones. This label is inspired by the suffering of Jesus Christ and evokes images of helplessness and meekness. It acts as hidden justification for the marginal, self-effacing role of victims in criminal procedure and restorative justice. The author argues for deconstruction of the stereotypical victim label and the creation of more space in criminal procedure for victims as autonomous parties. In his view the recent innovation in Dutch law of a limited Victim Impact Statement still gives victims insufficient voice. He also argues for a reconceptualisation of restorative justice practices as a supplement to the criminal trial rather than as a substitute.

In the Dutch health care the importance of reporting adverse events is increasingly recognized. Reporting adverse events is seen as a valuable instrument to assess and improve the quality and safety of patient care. It is widely acknowledged that health care practitioners (physicians, nurses) should be able to report adverse events blame free, to prevent that information reported to improve the quality and safety of care is used for other purposes (e.g. to punish the reporter of other persons involved). Several parties have proposed to enact legislation to protect health care practitioners who report adverse events. In other sectors of the Dutch society, as well as in other countries, such legislation already exists. This legislation may serve as an example for legislative action in the area of Dutch health care.