App notifies police about stalker

Secretary of State for Equal Opportunities Elke Sleurs is launching an app for victims of stalking. The app allows them to contact local police with the single press of a button. The police simultaneously receive the location of the stalker, making it possible for them to prioritize the notification straight away. “We must show stalking victims that they can always count on our help when needed,” Elke Sleurs says.

The ‘stalking app’ concept already exists in various other countries, including in the Netherlands. In just a few months, the first pilot project will also take off in Belgium, in cooperation with the police of Antwerp. If that pilot is successful, the app can quickly be deployed everywhere. The app is not meant for the general public, but only for those who have previous experience with having been stalked.

20,000 calls a year

The police register over 20,000 stalking-related complaints a year. The profile of a stalker has already been mapped out extensively. Four in five stalkers are men. About half of those are ex-partners who are not able or unwilling to accept the end of a relationship. Forty percent accost a random stranger and ten percent think that the victim, in such cases often a celebrity, is in love with them.

“If you are a victim of stalking, your life is severely disrupted. Harm is inflicted upon you in the private sphere, which is precisely why victims of stalking need our full support. This new app can help make a difference in this,” Secretary of State Sleurs concludes.