Anachronisms by Law
▻http://02mydafsoup-01.soup.io/post/676818398/Anachronisms-by-Law
In an ongoing effort to combat online hate speech, the German Minister of Justice recently announced to examine the re-introduction of section 88a of the German Penal Code (hereinafter StGB). This law sanctioned the ‘anti-constitutional endorsement of crime’ and was only in force during a brief period between 1976 and 1981. It was supposed to counteract the spread of aggressive opinions and calls for violence. While politicians today are struggling with the issue of harmful online speech, one should refrain from re-introducing a law that was not only controversial back then but also ineffective. Apart from that, resurrecting the law in today’s digital world raises numerous questions.
A highly restrictive and vague law
According to sec. 88a StGB, distributing, publicly exhibiting or (...)