A Finnish lawmaker was fined for comments about homosexuality
In Finland, a court found Päivi Räsänen, a member of parliament from the Christian Democrats party, guilty in a case involving remarks about homosexuality.
The Finnish Supreme Court ruled that her statements in a 2004 text contained offensive remarks about homosexual people as a social group.
This was reported by Yle.
"In her article, Päivi Räsänen, among other things, asserts that... homosexuality is a mental disorder. She denied that homosexuality is a natural and healthy form of sexuality," the court ruling states.
The verdict also notes that the European Court of Human Rights takes a strict approach to statements that portray any social group, such as homosexuals, in a negative light.
The elected official will have to pay 20 daily fines, which, given her income level, will amount to 1,800 euros.
In her 2004 post titled “He Created Man and Woman,” Räsänen wrote that homosexual relationships challenge the Christian understanding of humanity. The post also appeared on the website of the Luther Foundation and the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Missionary Diocese in 2007. Räsänen republished this same post on her Facebook page in November 2019 and on her website in February 2020, which the court ruled constituted a violation of the law.
Bishop Juhani Pohjola, who represents the Luther Foundation, was also found guilty. The court fined the foundation 5,000 euros.
Räsänen is shocked by the verdict. According to her, the Supreme Court’s decision restricts freedom of speech.
Unemployment in Finland is rising, and the economy remains sluggish.
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