Poland's top court has taken a step towards defending the freedom of speech, saying that one can only be punished for defaming a state official under a current law if the statements are made while he is performing his function (link in Polish). I'm not quite clear on what the court ultimately deems an official function, but it still looks like good news. This should bring back at least some sanity to the defamation law that has been used by some ruling politicians to punish anybody daring to criticize them or say harsh things about them. It's at least a step in the right direction.
But I still think Poland's constitution guarantees a much wider freedom of speech than some laws allow. Or at least it should. I know this is quite an American point of view, but a country is ultimately stronger if citizens are allowed to freely criticize state officials. Too many times politicians, who usually have a much better way to refute such criticism than those making it, hide behind defamation laws and use them to stamp out dissent.
I wonder if this means that the Kaczynski Twins can't go after foreign journalists who make fun of them?
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2 comments:
I don’t the primacy of freedom of speech is an American view…it used to be quite popular in Europe too!
Not so at the moment. And you are right, the Polish constitution is proving to be quite robust against think skinned politicians…
I don’t think the primacy of freedom of speech is an American view…it used to be quite popular in Europe too!
Not so at the moment. And you are right, the Polish constitution is proving to be quite robust against think skinned politicians…
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