The German government tries to restrict freedom of speech
27-JANUARY • Deutschland •
The German Minister of Family, Lila Paus (Green Party), has proposed legislation to restrict freedom of speech, assistance to pregnant women in crisis, and religious activity around abortion centers in Germany. This measure would prevent women seeking abortions from being influenced by perspectives other than those of the abortion businesses themselves.
According to Der Spiegel, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Family have agreed to present this initiative at the first cabinet council and it would be passed by the Summer. Under this law, particularly serious cases could result in fines of up to 5,000 euros for administrative offenses. The use of administrative rather than criminal proceedings is increasingly common in European authoritarian governments, as it is more effective in deterring the public.
Paus is responding directly to a ruling by the German Higher Administrative Court last June, which declared unconstitutional the bans and exclusion zones enacted by some local authorities (such as Pforzheim) around these facilities. The Court ruled that freedom of speech and religion cannot be restricted in specific places, persons or matters, as these are fundamental rights protected by the German Constitution. Minister Paus appears unwilling to comply with binding international treaties (Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) that defend these fundamental rights without restriction beyond public order and other legal limits in exceptional circumstances.
More than 100,000 Germans are terminated in the womb each year. However, the German minister has never mentioned these victims in her statements. This omission demonstrates a blatant denial of scientific evidence and a disregard for human life in its most vulnerable stage.
This political and ideological stance not only denies science but also seeks to restrict information to women at risk of abortion, preventing them from reconsidering their decision to end the life of their child. It also puts them at risk of suffering psychological damage. The government, other social actors, and businesses involved in the abortion industry reserve the right to influence these women both inside the centers and through media and websites, which hide or ignore the unborn life and encourage the population to terminate it for any private reason. Denial of scientific truths is not a crime, even when it's done widely. Paus refers to this stance as "good advice". The possibility of allowing the baby to live is termed by her as "hatred and incitement".
Abortion advocates are unwilling to allow the spread of diverse perspectives, especially before the termination of an unborn baby. The right to express opinions different from those of the government or the dominant culture seems to have much more restricted limits than those proclaimed by democracy or fundamental rights. These are common in any other area (starting conversations in the street or offering information), but never concerning abortion.
Paus has labeled offers of help or the presence of prayers as "lies, harassment, and emotional distress", or even "hate speech", following the progressive argument in other agenda issues.
Tomislav Čunović, director of international affairs for 40 Days for Life and the lawyer who successfully challenged the bans in court, told Live Site News that the measures announced for this new law promoted by Lila Paus are merely smoke and mirrors, a form of psychological and media warfare, since they reiterate prohibitions already established in other laws. Čunović believes that the government wants to appear active to please its audience, similar to what the then Minister of Equality in Spain, Irene Montero, did when she reformed the penal code to "prohibit harassment of pregnant women", by adding subjective and hard-to-prove elements to the legal text. In Spain, the Penal Code modification did not stop prayer vigils, as logically, there can be no harassment or coercion in peaceful prayer or in offering help.
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