Finland Supreme Court to hold oral hearing of Räsänen case
Päivi Räsänen. Photo Samuel Lemantovich
Northern Europe
Thousands in and out of Finland were already expecting a final verdict from the Supreme Court. But on Thursday, Päivi Räsänen was informed that the court would organise an oral hearing. No exact date was given yet; Räsänen said on Friday that it would follow in late summer.
Stay up to date with Christian news in Europe? Sign up for CNE's newsletter.
Fourteen months ago, the Supreme Court of Finland decided to handle the Räsänen case. The issue concerns the legality of expressing Christian views on sexual ethics. Christians from many countries see this case as a litmus test for freedom of expression and Christian witness in today’s Europe.
On Friday afternoon, the spokesperson of the Supreme Court was not able to confirm the news that Mrs Räsänen has released.
The Finnish member of parliament Päivi Räsänen was prosecuted for hate speech after posting a Bible text from Romans 1 about homosexuality in the context of Helsinki Pride in 2019. Räsänen has been a member of parliament for the Christian Democratic Party of Finland and has served as a home affairs minister.
In 2022 and 2023, Räsänen was acquitted on all charges by both the Helsinki District Court and the Helsinki Court of Appeal. However, the prosecutor wanted to have the politician and former government minister still prosecuted by the Supreme Court. However, one part of the charge was dropped. That means she has already been acquitted for her position in a satirical radio show, where she was provoked about her Biblical conviction. In the earlier court case, the prosecutor even demanded the deletion of the radio recordings of this program from the archives.
Räsänen had been expecting a final verdict from the Supreme Court for some months already. This highest court in the country does not need to have a hearing but can handle the case from older material. An oral hearing was not expected anymore since the court would have decided about that earlier, together with the decision to handle the case at all. But things went differently, and Mrs Räsänen was informed about this on Thursday.
In a message about the Supreme Court’s decision, Räsänen reminds her audience that the case has lasted over six years already and “contained untruthful accusations, [and] long police interrogations lasting over 13 hours”.
She repeats her motives that in the posting, she had a message for the leadership of the Lutheran Church of Finland that supported the Pride events, and of which she is a member herself. She never had the intention of defaming homosexuals or any other minority.
“The core of this case is whether it is still allowed to openly hold biblical teachings in Finland”, Räsänen explains in a press release. “I hold it to be a privilege and an honour to defend freedom of speech, which is a fundamental right in a democratic state.”
According to the Finnish MP, a Supreme Court rejection of the charges would set an important precedent and protect the freedom of Finnish Christians to openly express Biblical teachings.
Räsänen and her legal team are supported by ADF International since this organisation believes that this case has implications not only in Finland but all over Europe. If the Supreme Court rules against her, the politician could apply at the European Court for Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg.
For the MP herself, this case is connected to her personal faith. “I am waiting for the Supreme Court ruling with a calm mind,” she said on Friday.
Related Articles
