Be a figurehead, have the difficult conversation and start a social movement against sexual misconduct. This is what Mariëtte Hamer envisioned for the position of government commissioner for sexual misconduct and sexual violence, which she has held since 2022. Her term expires at the end of this year. “I have tried not to translate everything into legislation,” she says during an interview at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. “And I certainly hadn’t thought of calling for the establishment of a government agency,” she adds.
Yet that is what she does in her advice ‘Safe investigation’, which she sent earlier this week to David van Weel, Minister of Justice and Security, and made public on Thursday morning. Private investigative parties, the best known of which is the Hoffmann corporate investigation agency, are regularly called in to investigate issues surrounding transgressive behavior. Not all of them are specialized in this type of research. That is why her advice calls for far-reaching reforms for the system private investigation.
The consequences of inadequate research are serious. When things go wrong, everyone is damaged
Hamer therefore advocates an authority to be set up that will discipline the private research sector. This is necessary due to the growth of non-independent, methodologically incorrect or careless research into transgressive behavior since social awareness of this subject has increased. She calls the consequences of inadequate research major. “If things go wrong, everyone is damaged.”
Hamer does not want to give examples of substandard research, but they can easily be found in judicial decisions. The investigation into a manager that the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences conducted was deserving according to the judge “not the beauty prize”. Omroep Ongehoord Nederland had an “extremely careless” external investigation carried out, after which the court certain that there were no grounds for dismissal for former director Arnold Karskens. In both cases, significant severance payments were awarded, but there is usually no way back for the accused official.
“The tip of the iceberg,” Hamer calls these examples. There are no figures, but it is based on conversations with experts around and in the sector. Because going to court is very difficult and often comes too late, it must be possible to enforce guarantees for good private investigation in advance, says Hamer.
‘Keep cowboys out of the sector’
Although there is a licensing system for private investigation agencies, the system has not grown with the times, Hamer believes. Research into complex reports of sexual misconduct or abuse of power “requires specific knowledge, for example about interview techniques, legislation and psychology surrounding coping and shame,” she says.
Yet relevant qualifications of researchers are hardly taken into account in the current system. There is a licensing requirement for personal research, via the Justis screening authority. Responsibility for this lies with the police leadership, those companies tests to the Private Security Organizations and Investigation Agencies Act (Wpbr). Licensed companies should also be assessed based on substantiated complaints in appeals and judicial decisions regarding their investigations. These are currently not registered, Hamer states in her advice.
There is an eagerness in this emerging industry to say ‘yes’ to everything
Access to such an appeal procedure is currently vested in two trade associations, the Dutch Security Industry and the Trade Association for Private Investigation Agencies. But therein lies the shortcoming: an agency must be affiliated with it. That is why she advocates a government body that monitors the sector. An agency where people can go who become part of an investigation – reporters but also accused persons.
In addition to a complaints committee, the newly formed government agency would also consist of a supervisory body. This must ensure that “cowboys” are kept out of the sector, a term that Hamer quotes from conversations with those involved. She does not comment on the required number of FTEs or financial coverage. For an idea, she refers to the recent structure of the Dutch Lending Market Authority, which supervises employment agencies, secondment companies and payroll companies.
Hamer is not critical of the entire sector, but she often sees things going wrong. She disputes that her plea mainly benefits the protection of accused persons. “I know many cases where reporters felt extremely left out because investigations were not carried out properly.”
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‘Don’t say yes to everything’
She says that things go wrong especially when research into the culture within an organization turns into research that can be traced back to one or a few people. In practice, there is regularly a “tacit shift” from cultural research to person-oriented research, according to Hamer. Investigative agencies must be obliged to suspend the investigation if it becomes traceable to a person. Hamer also advocates a duty of refusal for research agencies: that they pass on an assignment if they do not have the expertise in-house. “There is an eagerness in this emerging industry to say ‘yes’ to everything.”
Another piece of advice from Hamer is that an organization should not engage its own ‘in-house lawyer’ in an investigation into abuses for which the same client, the client, is responsible. This was the case, for example, with the investigation that producer ITV had conducted by its regular law firm Van Doorne into the abuses in the talent program. The Voice of Holland. This affair involving sexual misconduct in the TV program was the direct reason for the appointment of government commissioner Hamer in 2022.
The Voice of Holland has been back on TV since this year. Did the producer get off easy?
The Voice of Holland has been back on TV since this year. Hamer doesn’t think ITV got away easily. “It is clear internally that the system for dealing with reports and the complaints procedure has been adjusted, and ITV and RTL have done a good job.”
Hamer does not think this will be the last advice she issues, even though her term expires at the end of this year. She previously recommended making confidential counselors mandatory at companies and other organizations. A law that ensures this, in the case of more than ten employees, has been passed in the House of Representatives but still has to be passed by the Senate.
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Mariëtte Hamer wants to prevent transgressive behavior through ‘culture change’: ‘Ultimately it’s all about thinking for yourself’
