A Costly T-Shirt?
The Italian judiciary is investigating whether Roberto Calderoli, who resigned from his post as government minister last week, is guilty of “contempt of religion.” Mr Calderoli wore a T-shirt with a cartoon of the Muslim prophet Muhammad. If he is found guilty the former minister can be fined a penalty of €1,000 to €5,000.
On 31 January the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasburg ruled that freedom of speech allows harsh criticism of religion. The ECHR condemned France for a 1998 French court ruling that Paul Giniewski, a Jewish French historian of Austrian origin, had defamed the Church by saying that it was directly responsible for very serious crimes by “readying the ground where the idea and realisation of Auschwitz sprouted.” Mr Giniewski had been prosecuted for “racially defamatory statements against the Christian community.” According to the ECHR the French authorities had unlawfully deprived Mr Giniewski of his right to free speech.
The Strasburg-based ECHR said Mr Giniewski himself admitted his attack might shock or offend some people, but “such views do not in themselves preclude the enjoyment of freedom of expression.” According to the European Court freedom of expression can be restricted if religions are intentionally insulted, but only when this “does not in any way contribute to the debate among the members of society.”
The ECHR claimed that Mr Giniewski had wished to contribute to “the search for historical truth.” Freedom of speech can only be restricted in instances of “mere insults,” “incitement to hatred” or if “it tarnished a clearly established historical truth” (such as the holocaust).
Stating that the holocaust did not happen is a crime in Europe, but stating that the Catholic Church is responsible for it is not. It remains to be seen what the courts will say about Mr Calderoli’s T-shirt. Did he “contribute to the debate among the members of society” or did he “merely insult” and “incite to hatred?”
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