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”.


Ex-NFL linebacker poised to return to Congress after Texas runoff win with Jasmine Crockett endorsement
Trump-backed Air Force veteran wins GOP runoff in newly-redistricted House district
U.S. military kills alleged narco-terrorist in lethal strike on drug-trafficking vessel in Eastern Pacific
Texas Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright and wife share story of 2017 crash that left her permanently paralyzed
Breaking: Longtime Democrat Rep. Al Green Has Been Defeated, Will Lose His Seat in Congress
BREAKING: Ken Paxton Has Defeated John Cornyn in the TX GOP Senate Primary
GOP veteran defeats populist candidate in one of America’s most conservative districts
MAGA triumph: Trump ally Ken Paxton defeats John Cornyn in bitter Texas GOP primary war
We Could Cover 10 Percent of the Entire Deficit if Gov’t Stopped Accidentally Making Improper Payments
Owner of Trump House Who Was Brutally Beaten Has Died – Wife Believes Politics Motivated Murder
Reparations-Backing California Candidate Run Out of Black LA Neighborhood Over His ‘Devil Blue Eyes’
Murder-suicide probe underway after alleged Tom Selleck impersonator scam targeted woman
Mamdani faces a Muslim problem ahead of Gracie Mansion protest
DOJ sues UCLA for fostering ‘hostile’ antisemitic environment for Jewish and Israeli students
Thom Tillis Unloads on Hegseth, Ken Paxton in Weekend Tantrum as GOP’s Establishment Wing Faces Extinction
See also  Tulsi Gabbard honors wish of Gold Star wife to visit husband’s grave at Arlington National Cemetery

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.


Ex-NFL linebacker poised to return to Congress after Texas runoff win with Jasmine Crockett endorsement
Trump-backed Air Force veteran wins GOP runoff in newly-redistricted House district
U.S. military kills alleged narco-terrorist in lethal strike on drug-trafficking vessel in Eastern Pacific
Texas Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright and wife share story of 2017 crash that left her permanently paralyzed
Breaking: Longtime Democrat Rep. Al Green Has Been Defeated, Will Lose His Seat in Congress
BREAKING: Ken Paxton Has Defeated John Cornyn in the TX GOP Senate Primary
GOP veteran defeats populist candidate in one of America’s most conservative districts
MAGA triumph: Trump ally Ken Paxton defeats John Cornyn in bitter Texas GOP primary war
We Could Cover 10 Percent of the Entire Deficit if Gov’t Stopped Accidentally Making Improper Payments
Owner of Trump House Who Was Brutally Beaten Has Died – Wife Believes Politics Motivated Murder
Reparations-Backing California Candidate Run Out of Black LA Neighborhood Over His ‘Devil Blue Eyes’
Murder-suicide probe underway after alleged Tom Selleck impersonator scam targeted woman
Mamdani faces a Muslim problem ahead of Gracie Mansion protest
DOJ sues UCLA for fostering ‘hostile’ antisemitic environment for Jewish and Israeli students
Thom Tillis Unloads on Hegseth, Ken Paxton in Weekend Tantrum as GOP’s Establishment Wing Faces Extinction
See also  NBA star places massive bet on Spencer Pratt in LA mayoral race

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.


Ex-NFL linebacker poised to return to Congress after Texas runoff win with Jasmine Crockett endorsement
Trump-backed Air Force veteran wins GOP runoff in newly-redistricted House district
U.S. military kills alleged narco-terrorist in lethal strike on drug-trafficking vessel in Eastern Pacific
Texas Railroad Commissioner Jim Wright and wife share story of 2017 crash that left her permanently paralyzed
Breaking: Longtime Democrat Rep. Al Green Has Been Defeated, Will Lose His Seat in Congress
BREAKING: Ken Paxton Has Defeated John Cornyn in the TX GOP Senate Primary
GOP veteran defeats populist candidate in one of America’s most conservative districts
MAGA triumph: Trump ally Ken Paxton defeats John Cornyn in bitter Texas GOP primary war
We Could Cover 10 Percent of the Entire Deficit if Gov’t Stopped Accidentally Making Improper Payments
Owner of Trump House Who Was Brutally Beaten Has Died – Wife Believes Politics Motivated Murder
Reparations-Backing California Candidate Run Out of Black LA Neighborhood Over His ‘Devil Blue Eyes’
Murder-suicide probe underway after alleged Tom Selleck impersonator scam targeted woman
Mamdani faces a Muslim problem ahead of Gracie Mansion protest
DOJ sues UCLA for fostering ‘hostile’ antisemitic environment for Jewish and Israeli students
Thom Tillis Unloads on Hegseth, Ken Paxton in Weekend Tantrum as GOP’s Establishment Wing Faces Extinction

Story cited here.

See also  FBI launches ‘fittest agent’ competition for field offices
Share this article:
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter