In a despicable attack on the freedom of speech, a German right-wing journalist has been sentenced to seven months’ probation for mocking left-wing Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.
In its verdict on Monday, April 7th, the district court in the Bavarian town of Bamberg also ordered David Bendels to apologise in writing to Nancy Faeser.
The editor-in-chief of the news website Deutschland-Kurier was punished for sharing a satirical meme on his X account. The meme, which was posted by Bendels last February, shows Nancy Faeser holding up a sign, with the words: “I hate freedom of expression.”
Bendels and his lawyers announced that they would appeal the verdict, which appears to be politically motivated.
The editor-in-chief said he “will continue the just fight for freedom of the press and freedom of expression, which is indispensable for the continued existence of democracy in Germany.”
Martin Reichardt, an MP for the right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), called the verdict “a black day for freedom of expression, a black day for democracy in Germany.”
Faeser had brought the lawsuit against Bendels under a law introduced by the previous Angela Merkel-led German government, which allows politicians to file a criminal complaint if they believe that they have been the target of defamatory comments in relation to their official duties.
The law itself is concerning as it gives way to cracking down on free speech, satire, and humour.
The legislation has been abused by left-wing politicians who regularly use legal tools to go after ordinary citizens who have done nothing wrong other than to criticise their elected leaders.
In a deeply disturbing case last year, a 64-year-old German pensioner’s house was raided by police, and his computer and mobile phone confiscated, after a complaint by Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck, who was upset that the pensioner had called him an imbecile on social media.
Habeck and his Green party colleague, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, have filed over one thousand such criminal complaints, mostly due to perceived online insults.
Monday’s verdict is in line with efforts by left-wing German politicians to silence opposition parties and critical, right-wing journalists who dare to call out the government’s failures.
As David Bendels told europeanconservative.com in an interview in December about his impending sentence:
This appears to be the purpose: punish one man and silence hundreds!
