International News Opinons Politics

German Federal Council Passes Bill Giving Three Years in Prison for Denigrating EU Flag

The German Bundesrat, the upper chamber of the German parliament, has proposed banning Germans from denigrating both the European Union flag and anthem.

The Bundesrat, which is composed of delegates from the German states, passed a bill that could see individuals who either denigrate the EU flag or the EU anthem, Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”, punished with a fine or up to three years in prison, Die Welt reports.

German newspaper Saarbrücken Zeitung obtained a draft of the law earlier this year that urged law enforcement agencies “to take firm and effective action against those whose aim is to disparage the fundamental values ​​of the European Union”.


The draft continued, stating that violations would also cover attacks “on the reputation of the symbols of the European Union”.


Mamdani’s response to Trump’s Iran strike sparks conservative backlash: ‘Rooting for the ayatollah’
Iran vows ‘decisive’ self-defense at UN after Trump kills supreme leader in Operation Epic Fury
Concerns rise over DHS shutdown in shadow of Iran strikes: ‘Now would be a good time’ to end it
Jeb Bush commends former rival Trump’s Iran operation: ‘This is their time to take their country back’
Man confesses to killing 7-year-old while on the lam after DNA links him to 30-year cold case: authorities
Obama official who backed Iran deal sparks online outrage with reaction to Trump’s strike: ‘Sit this one out’
Bill Clinton’s credibility threatened by decades of scandals amid grilling over Epstein ties
Trump says Khamenei is dead: ‘The single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country’
Monitoring the situation: White House releases photos of Trump, Rubio and team being briefed on Iran operation
Iran Supreme Leader Targeted, Believed Killed, in Sweeping US-Israeli Strikes
Trump orders strikes on Iran; experts say he can bypass Congress (for now)
The US and Israel attacked Iran: What we know
Trump finds unlikely Democratic allies on decision to strike Iran
Democrats buck party leaders to defend Trump’s ‘decisive action’ on Iran
Nancy Guthrie missing: Forensic scientist encourages new investigative approach since case ‘isn’t cold yet’
See also  Trump invites US men’s hockey team to attend State of the Union speech

The newly passed bill must now be ratified by the Bundestag, although no date for a vote on the matter has been scheduled so far.

Germany has laws on the books that outlaw the denigration of foreign flags and national emblems but so far, the European Union’s flag and symbols have not been recognised under the laws.


Mamdani’s response to Trump’s Iran strike sparks conservative backlash: ‘Rooting for the ayatollah’
Iran vows ‘decisive’ self-defense at UN after Trump kills supreme leader in Operation Epic Fury
Concerns rise over DHS shutdown in shadow of Iran strikes: ‘Now would be a good time’ to end it
Jeb Bush commends former rival Trump’s Iran operation: ‘This is their time to take their country back’
Man confesses to killing 7-year-old while on the lam after DNA links him to 30-year cold case: authorities
Obama official who backed Iran deal sparks online outrage with reaction to Trump’s strike: ‘Sit this one out’
Bill Clinton’s credibility threatened by decades of scandals amid grilling over Epstein ties
Trump says Khamenei is dead: ‘The single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country’
Monitoring the situation: White House releases photos of Trump, Rubio and team being briefed on Iran operation
Iran Supreme Leader Targeted, Believed Killed, in Sweeping US-Israeli Strikes
Trump orders strikes on Iran; experts say he can bypass Congress (for now)
The US and Israel attacked Iran: What we know
Trump finds unlikely Democratic allies on decision to strike Iran
Democrats buck party leaders to defend Trump’s ‘decisive action’ on Iran
Nancy Guthrie missing: Forensic scientist encourages new investigative approach since case ‘isn’t cold yet’
See also  Richard Cox derails sex offender case, once again

The country also has laws against insulting foreign heads of state, a law that nearly saw the prosecution of left-wing comedian Jan Böhmermann in 2016 over an offensive poem about Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that was later banned by a German court.

While charges were initiated against Böhmermann, they were later dropped, with Chancellor Angela Merkel even admitting that she had made an “error” in viewing the poem as “deliberately insulting”.

In neighbouring France, the government has forced schools across the country to start flying the EU flag alongside the French tricolore.

The move was part of educational reforms enacted by French president Emmanuel Macron that also lowered the age of compulsory school entry from six to three years old.


Mamdani’s response to Trump’s Iran strike sparks conservative backlash: ‘Rooting for the ayatollah’
Iran vows ‘decisive’ self-defense at UN after Trump kills supreme leader in Operation Epic Fury
Concerns rise over DHS shutdown in shadow of Iran strikes: ‘Now would be a good time’ to end it
Jeb Bush commends former rival Trump’s Iran operation: ‘This is their time to take their country back’
Man confesses to killing 7-year-old while on the lam after DNA links him to 30-year cold case: authorities
Obama official who backed Iran deal sparks online outrage with reaction to Trump’s strike: ‘Sit this one out’
Bill Clinton’s credibility threatened by decades of scandals amid grilling over Epstein ties
Trump says Khamenei is dead: ‘The single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country’
Monitoring the situation: White House releases photos of Trump, Rubio and team being briefed on Iran operation
Iran Supreme Leader Targeted, Believed Killed, in Sweeping US-Israeli Strikes
Trump orders strikes on Iran; experts say he can bypass Congress (for now)
The US and Israel attacked Iran: What we know
Trump finds unlikely Democratic allies on decision to strike Iran
Democrats buck party leaders to defend Trump’s ‘decisive action’ on Iran
Nancy Guthrie missing: Forensic scientist encourages new investigative approach since case ‘isn’t cold yet’

Story cited here.

See also  ‘We did not hear the truth from the president’: Spanberger squares up to Trump in State of the Union rebuttal
Share this article:
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter