• Latest
  • All
Päivi Räsänen

Räsänen case: prosecution does not yield, appeals against the former Minister

April 13, 2022
Jersey’s trans inclusion guidance sparks parental outrage

Jersey’s trans inclusion guidance sparks parental outrage

May 27, 2025
IOF’s joint statement for the 2022 Commission on the Status of Women

Protect and Promote Your National Treasure! IOF’s joint statement for the 2025 International Day of Families

May 15, 2025
Former Louisville University professor wins $1.6 million over dismissal for criticism of transgender treatments for children

Former Louisville University professor wins $1.6 million over dismissal for criticism of transgender treatments for children

April 26, 2025
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Author: Alfredo Borba

Pope Francis passed away at the age of 88

April 21, 2025
Author: Tom Morris

U.K. Supreme Court defines woman based on biological sex

April 16, 2025
New Colorado bill punishes moms and dads for rejecting trans ideology

New Colorado bill punishes moms and dads for rejecting trans ideology

April 5, 2025
Female fencer Stephanie Turner faces penalties for refusal to compete against transgender opponent

Female fencer Stephanie Turner faces penalties for refusal to compete against transgender opponent

April 3, 2025
Georgia Governor to sign Riley Gaines Act of 2025, safeguarding women’s sports from transgender ideology

Georgia Governor to sign Riley Gaines Act of 2025, safeguarding women’s sports from transgender ideology

April 2, 2025
Humanity’s indispensable but unsung heroes

Humanity’s indispensable but unsung heroes

March 18, 2025
AfD politician slams leftist abortion agenda in staunchly pro-life speech

AfD politician slams leftist abortion agenda in staunchly pro-life speech

March 12, 2025
  • About iFamNews
  • Contact

Navigation Button Subscribe

  • Subscribe
June 4, 2025
  • Login
  • Register
No Result
View All Result
  • English
    • Italiano
    • Español
    • Français
    • Deutsch
    • Polski
    • српски
    • Русский
    • Hrvatski

Navigation Button Donate

  • Donate
International Family News Network (IFN)
  • Home
  • Opinion
  • Life
  • Family
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Science
  • Shows
  • Petitions
  • Subscribe
  • Donate
International Family News Network (IFN)
  • Home
  • Opinion
  • Life
  • Family
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Science
  • Shows
  • Petitions
  • Subscribe
  • Donate
No Result
View All Result
International Family News Network (IFN)
No Result
View All Result

Räsänen case: prosecution does not yield, appeals against the former Minister

The Finnish MP fights back, "The more you manifest your faith, the less they will censor you."

Luca Marcolivio by Luca Marcolivio
April 13, 2022
in Foreground, Politics
84
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
Päivi Räsänen

Image from Päivi Räsänen (Facebook)

Share on FacebookShare on WhatsAppShare on TelegramShare on TwitterShare on WeChat

The court case of Päivi Räsänen in Finland is by no means over. On Wednesday, the Helsinki Public Prosecutor’s Office appealed the ruling that cleared the former interior minister of charges of “homophobia” and incitement to hatred.

In a statement issued the day after the verdict, prosecutor Raija Toiviainen said: “The district court interprets Räsänen’s statements differently from the prosecutor. […] This does not mean that the prosecutor has provided false information. There is nothing false in the allegations.”

Juhana Pohjola, Lutheran bishop of the Diocese of Evangelical Lutheran Mission, co-defendant in the Räsänen trial and also cleared of the charges, will also likely see the verdict of his acquittal challenged.

Ready to defend anyone’s freedom

“This case has been weighing on me and my family for almost three years,” Räsänen said upon hearing about the appeal. “After the tribunal completely exonerated me, I am dismayed that the prosecutor does not want to end this campaign against me. Once again, I am ready to defend the freedom of expression and religious freedom not only for me, but for everyone.”

Paul Coleman, executive director of Alliance Defending Freedom International, a lawyer on the team defending the Finnish parliamentarian, calls the appeal an “alarming” move.

“Dragging people to court for years, subjecting them to hour-long police interrogations and wasting taxpayer money to trample on deeply held beliefs is not worthy of a democratic society,” Coleman said. “As is often the case in ‘hate speech’ proceedings, the process became part of the punishment.”

U.S. conservatives in solidarity

In an email sent to The Washington Times, former U.S. Ambassador for Worldwide Religious Freedom Sam Brownback deplored the prosecutor’s appeal.

“First of all, it was wrong to pursue free speech, but even worse is to appeal a unanimous decision,” declares the former Kansas governor. “Freedom of speech in the religious sphere is freedom of expression, but freedom of expression is a myth if it does not also include freedom of speech in the religious sphere. The prosecutor does not understand the meaning of freedom.”

Brownback is not the only U.S. politician to criticize the prosecution in the Räsänen trial. In January, Republican Senators Marco Rubio (Florida), Josh Hawley (Missouri), James Lankford and James Inhofe (Oklahoma) and Mike Braun (Indiana) asked Ambassador Rashad Hussain, Brownback’s successor for religious freedom, to “condemn these unjust prosecutions.”

“Cancel culture threatens democracy.”

Interviewed by Christian Today, Räsänen reiterates that she feels ready to “defend freedom of expression and religious freedom in any court of law that is necessary, including the European Court of Human Rights,” because the ruling that exonerated her is “important for Christians who believe in the Bible,” but even more so “for freedom of expression.”

The ruling itself “provides a sound and solid basis for defending fundamental rights before the Court of Appeals.” To prevent the ambiguous “incitement to hatred” laws from backfiring on Christians, it is, in short, “important to win this case,” the former Finnish minister stresses.

For Räsänen, it is important to “speak publicly about the Gospel” and to “manifest one’s faith,” otherwise the space for expressing it “will become more and more restricted. The longer one remains silent, the greater the risk of laws that aim to limit freedom of expression.” And so “the international community must express its concern about any kind of attack on freedom of expression. Anyone must be free to express beliefs they deeply believe in without fear of censorship or criminal sanctions.”

It is therefore necessary, says Räsänen, “to put pressure on parliaments and other levels of power, both nationally and internationally” to “raise awareness of the dangers of censorship and cancel culture, which are threats to any democracy”.

Tags: finlandfreedom of religionfreedom of speechhate speechLGBT+Paivi RasanenReligious Freedom
Luca Marcolivio

Luca Marcolivio

A professional journalist, Luca Marcolivio has been accredited to the Holy See Press Office since 2011. Director of the webmagazine of religious information Cristiani Today, e collaborates with La nuova Bussola Quotidiana, Pro Vita & Famiglia and the blog of the Centro Machiavelli. From 2011 to 2017 he was Editor-in-Chief of the Italian edition of Zenit. He is the author of Contro Garibaldi. Quello che a scuola non vi hanno raccontato and the editor of La società dell’allegria. Don Bosco raccontato dai salesiani del XXI Secolo

Discussion about this post

Popular News

  • Jersey’s trans inclusion guidance sparks parental outrage

    Jersey’s trans inclusion guidance sparks parental outrage

    0 shares 18 VIEWS
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Justice continues with the proceedings against the organizers of the procession of the “Santina Queer” in Gijon after the complaint of Christian Lawyers.

    0 shares 17 VIEWS
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Christian Lawyers request to Justice the withdrawal of a coloring booklet in the city hall of Ciudad Real(Spain)

    0 shares 17 VIEWS
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Christian Lawyers once again paralyzes the demolition of a cross, in this case in Teruel (Spain).

    0 shares 9 VIEWS
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Christian Lawyers takes to court the government’s request for the resignification of the Valley for including parts of the Basilica, such as the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament.

    0 shares 8 VIEWS
    Share 0 Tweet 0

IFN – International Family News Network

© 2022 IFN – International Family News - All Rights Reserved.

Quick Links

  • About iFamNews
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy

Follow Us

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
Subscribe

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Opinion
  • Life
  • Family
  • Culture
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • Science
  • Shows
  • Petitions
  • Subscribe
  • Donate

  • en English
  • it Italiano
  • es Español
  • fr Français
  • de Deutsch
  • pl Polski
  • sr српски
  • ru Русский
  • hr Hrvatski
  • Login
  • Sign Up

© 2022 IFN – International Family News - All Rights Reserved.