Flick 🇬🇧 on Nostr: ...
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/21/if-its-a-crime-to-call-politicians-stupid-were-in-trouble/
In a village in Germany, we learnt this week, police raided the home of a 64-year-old man and confiscated his tablet computer – after he allegedly shared a post depicting Robert Habeck, the country’s vice-chancellor, as a “Schwachkopf”. Which, in English, translates as “weak head”.
Or, more simply: “idiot”.
You may be wondering how on earth it could possibly be considered a crime to call a politician stupid. If so, read the following passage from the website of Deutsche Welle, Germany’s state-owned international broadcaster.
“Any political officials in Germany – all the way from the chancellor to the municipal level – can press charges against perceived public insults, if they think they can demonstrate reputational harm or an impact on their ability to carry out their role. If convicted, perpetrators can face a fine or up to three years in prison.”
To be clear: this is specifically about insults, not libel, which is covered by a separate law. And yes, posts on social media do count. The law, explains Deutsche Welle, “was amended in 2021, primarily to reword it to make clear that online communications could also qualify.”
https://archive.ph/h3Mpp
In a village in Germany, we learnt this week, police raided the home of a 64-year-old man and confiscated his tablet computer – after he allegedly shared a post depicting Robert Habeck, the country’s vice-chancellor, as a “Schwachkopf”. Which, in English, translates as “weak head”.
Or, more simply: “idiot”.
You may be wondering how on earth it could possibly be considered a crime to call a politician stupid. If so, read the following passage from the website of Deutsche Welle, Germany’s state-owned international broadcaster.
“Any political officials in Germany – all the way from the chancellor to the municipal level – can press charges against perceived public insults, if they think they can demonstrate reputational harm or an impact on their ability to carry out their role. If convicted, perpetrators can face a fine or up to three years in prison.”
To be clear: this is specifically about insults, not libel, which is covered by a separate law. And yes, posts on social media do count. The law, explains Deutsche Welle, “was amended in 2021, primarily to reword it to make clear that online communications could also qualify.”
https://archive.ph/h3Mpp