Right-wing MP convicted of defamation
Pleaded guilty in order to protest what he said was an unfair law Jesper Langballe, church spokesperson for the Danish People’s Party (DF), was on Friday convicted of making defamatory statements about Muslims. Langballe pleaded guilty to the charge of...
Jesper Langballe, church spokesperson for the Danish People’s Party (DF), was on Friday convicted of making defamatory statements about Muslims.
Langballe pleaded guilty to the charge of defamation under the anti-racism section of the penal code.
In January, Langballe wrote a letter to Berlingske Tidende newspaper in which he commented on claims made by the chairman of the Free Press Society, Lars Hedegaard, that Muslim fathers rape their daughters.
In his letter, Langballe supported Hedegaard’s views, saying that Hedegaard should not have written that “Muslim fathers rape their daughters, when the truth seems to be that they only kill them (the so-called honour killings) – and turn a blind eye when uncles rape them.”
Langballe lashed out at the laws banning racist speech, and for allowing courts to convict people based on whether the defendant felt violated or defamed, and “not whether the statements made are actually true or false,” he said.
“Given this section and its position within the penal code, I have to believe that I’m being convicted in advance of the trial. I have no intention of participating in such a charade. That’s why I confess.”
Langballe was sentenced to pay 5,000 kroner.