Päivi Räsänen to appeal to ECHR after conviction over biblical pamphlet

Päivi Räsänen has said she will probably be appealing her case on the European Court of Human Rights.

Räsänen, a Finnish politician, was recently found guilty by the Finnish Supreme Court of insulting the LGBT community via a a long time old pamphlet on sexual ethics. 

Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola was also convicted of “making and keeping available to the general public a text that insults a bunch”.

Their conviction followed two previous acquittals in lower courts. The Supreme Court found them guilty after the state appealed. 

On her decision to take the case to Europe, Räsänen said, “The failure of the Finnish Supreme Court to uphold freedom of speech has set a dangerous precedent in my country and across Europe.

“I feel it’s my duty to appeal this decision, to reinstate respect for the fundamental human right that each one are free to peacefully express their views in the general public square.”

The Supreme Court was certainly not unanimous in its ruling, and decided 3 to 2 against Räsänen. The court ruled that each one copies of the offending booklet be destroyed and fined Räsänen, Bishop Pohjola, and the Luther Foundation Finland to the tune of 1000’s of euros.

Räsänen added, “I do know I’m not alone in facing unjust persecution under ‘hate speech’ laws that make sharing Christian beliefs a criminal offense.

“I make my appeal within the hope that the European Court of Human Rights will recognise that peacefully expressing one’s beliefs is rarely against the law, and be certain that this basic freedom is protected for all.”

A member of Räsänen’s legal team, Lorcán Price of ADF international described the Finnish ruling as “retroactive censorship” and a “chilling” development”.

Price said, “The ‘hate speech’ laws used to convict Päivi Räsänen and Bishop Pohjola clearly contradict international human rights law regarding freedom of speech and freedom of faith.

“If such laws could be interpreted so broadly as to incorporate a decades-old church booklet, how can anyone in Finland be sure that anything they’ve said, or will say, is not going to be prosecuted?

“It is imperative that the European Court of Human Rights make clear and protect these fundamental freedoms definitively.”