Much-discussed rule for tackling street harassment does not exist: ‘Only take enforcement action after three incidents? That’s never going to happen’

Being catcalled, groped or humiliated three times. Only then are special enforcement officers allowed to draw up an official report for street harassment. That impression has become widespread in the Netherlands following statements by Rotterdam officials. But an investigation by Univers shows that the ‘three times caught in the act’ rule does not exist.

Several Dutch cities, including Tilburg and Rotterdam, are taking part in a pilot involving special enforcement officers, known in Dutch as boa’s. They enforce the new criminal offence of sexual street harassment. According to the AD, the pilot has resulted in only nine fines over the course of two years.

This has created the impression that the law is virtually impossible to enforce in practice. One explanation that has appeared repeatedly in the media is that boa’s supposedly have to witness an offence three times before they can draw up an official report.

But that rule does not exist at all, an investigation by Univers shows. We examined the law and case law and spoke to the Public Prosecution Service, the municipalities of Tilburg and Rotterdam, the police and the Stop Street Harassment Foundation to find out how it actually works.

Witnessing it three times

‘Boa’s have to witness sexual street harassment three times before they are allowed to write an official report,’ Rotterdam alderman Pascal Lansink-Bastemeijer claimed in the Algemeen Dagblad. According to the alderman and VVD council member Erik Verweij, this rule makes the new law difficult to enforce in practice. Their statements were subsequently repeated by various media outlets, including Univers.

Verweij tells Univers that he and the alderman ‘were, in short, given this explanation and followed it’. But according to him, they have not yet been able to establish exactly where this rule is laid down.

The council member has therefore submitted written questions to Rotterdam’s municipal executive. ‘That will also give us a better understanding of which rules or laws would need to be amended to make this law easier to apply.’

Police and ministry are not aware of the rule

The police are not aware of the alleged guideline. Eric Passchier, spokesperson for the Zeeland-West-Brabant police, says he only knows of the explanation from reports in the Algemeen Dagblad. In any case, it does not apply to the police.

The Ministry of Justice and Security is likewise unable to say what the ‘three times caught in the act’ rule is supposedly based on. According to spokesperson Ewout de Bruijn, it did not originate from the ministry, which is therefore unable to explain where it came from.

What does the court say?

The rule cannot be found in case law either. This is already clear from the first judgment in a criminal case concerning sexual street harassment, issued in October 2024. The case involved a man who approached a woman in the street and unexpectedly grabbed her by the hips.

‘Witness sexual harassment three times as it happens? That’s never going to happen’

In its judgment, the Rotterdam District Court explains in detail what powers boa’s have, when conduct constitutes sexual street harassment and what evidence is required. Here too, there is no requirement for a boa to witness three separate offences. On the contrary, the official reports show that the boa’s described what they themselves had seen. That evidence was sufficient for a conviction.

Tilburg is not aware of the rule

In Tilburg, the much-discussed rule has caused surprise. When asked whether boa’s have to witness sexual street harassment three times before they are allowed to take action, Tijmen Leijen, team manager for supervision and enforcement, does not need long to think: ‘No, that’s simply not true. It’s as simple as that. If it were true, we would never be able to issue a fine. Witness sexual harassment three times as it happens? That’s really never going to happen.’

According to Leijen, Tilburg boa’s are taught that a single observation of their own is sufficient, provided the legal requirements have been met (see the box at the bottom of this article). Remarkably, Tilburg’s boa’s, like those from other cities, receive their training for this pilot in Rotterdam.

One observation can be enough

The Public Prosecution Service, which is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of criminal offences, is equally clear. There is no guideline or legal requirement stating that a boa must witness street harassment three times before action can be taken, spokesperson Désirée Wilhelm says. According to Wilhelm, a boa may draw up an official report after a single observation.

According to the Public Prosecution Service, the explanation given in Rotterdam is ‘not in line with the agreed working procedure between municipalities, the police, the Public Prosecution Service and the Ministry of Justice and Security’. The Public Prosecution Service has pointed this out to the municipality of Rotterdam. The municipality has promised to correct the information internally.

Enforcement is not straightforward

According to Lieke Gaminde, chair of the Stop Street Harassment Foundation, it is concerning that a rule which has no basis and is incorrect has nevertheless spread so widely. ‘A great deal of progress has been made in tackling sexual street harassment in recent years, but at the same time there is still a lot of scepticism. People wonder whether the approach works at all and whether street harassment can even be tackled. It certainly can, but incorrect information in national media does not help.’

The fact that the ‘three times caught in the act’ rule does not exist provides clarity, but enforcing the law on sexual street harassment remains difficult. Almost everyone Univers spoke to emphasised that boa’s must witness the offence themselves and must be able to demonstrate that the conduct constitutes sexual street harassment under the law. This is often difficult because incidents occur unexpectedly and usually last only a short time.

‘Incorrect information in national media does not help efforts to tackle street harassment’

In addition, municipalities deploy only a limited number of specially trained boa’s during targeted enforcement operations. ‘That means capacity is limited,’ Gaminde explains. According to Gaminde, this shows precisely why the reality is more complicated than it is often made out to be. ‘An official report also has to be drafted very carefully if it is to stand up in court and result in a conviction. If you leave out that context and then conclude that the pilot does not work, that is far too simplistic.’

‘We are still in the middle of the process of finding out how this criminal offence works in practice,’ Gaminde says. ‘Let’s wait for the evaluation before concluding that the law does not work.’