07/14/2025
Wow - I wonder again, as often, if this is true - does anyone know? I heard this from different sources, but I still wish it would not be true. Criminal pursue for calling a politician an Idiot?
Germany has strong laws protecting free speech, but those rights are limited. In 2017, Germany repealed a law that banned criticizing foreign heads of state after a German comedian insulted the Turkish president. However, German law still prohibits insulting Germany’s head of state. Under the German Criminal Code, it is a crime to disparage the federal president and other members of the government. Penalties range from three months to up to five years in prison. “There are cases of politicians and former politicians bringing suits against citizens, including a former vice-chancellor who pursued a criminal complaint against a citizen for calling him an ‘idiot,’” Soud says.