Response to hate speech in Lithuania Eduardas Platovas LGL Dublin 2012

Comments on the internet inciting against a nationality, race, ethnic, religious or other group are classified under criminal offence against equality and freedom of conscience. Lithuanian laws assume criminal liability for these offences.

A 37-year-old man from Vilnius has been ordered in court to pay a fine of 450 euros (1560 Lithuanian litas) for a comment he posted under an article on Facebook about the Lady Gaga’s criticism of the Lithuanian Government.

The First District Court of Vilnius City judged that, in his public comment about gays, the man, currently employed as a furniture assembler, employed inflammatory rhetoric and encouraged mockery, defiance, discrimination and physical violence against a group of people or its members on the grounds of sexual orientation. Investigation into the comment was started after prosecutors received notification about it from Lithuanian Gay League (LGL).

The article concerned Lady Gaga’s performance in connection with Gay Pride events in Rome, during which she criticized governments of countries that violate the rights of homosexual people, including Lithuania. In his comment the man said: “What we need is another Hitler to exterminate those fags ‘cause there’s just too many of them multiplying.”

The Office of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman also considered the reader’s comment to encourage mockery, defiance and discrimination of a group of people or its members. Experts stated that the style of the comment is clearly contemptuous and reveals hatred towards homosexuals. The wording of the comment also directly calls for violent actions.

During questioning the author of the comment admitted publishing the comment on Facebook, but argued that his comment was only his own personal view. “It was not my intention to call for violence against gays and I feel sorry for what was written – I did not expect that this comment would insult anyone in the public domain,” the man said.

In 2011, 328 pre-judicial investigations related to incitement against a nationality, race, ethnic, religious or other group (Article 170 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania) were initiated. 208 of these were related to incitement against a group based on sexual orientation.

158 pre-judicial investigations were initiated under the same article of the Criminal Code in of these were related to incitement against a group based on sexual orientation.

Hate speech During municipal elections in February 2011, the political party Young Lithuania unveiled a slogan For A Lithuania Without Blue, Black, Red, and Gypsies From the Encampment. Young Lithuania explained the slogan saying, “for a Lithuania […] without blue […] the ideology of sexual perversion that is being imposed on us from abroad. Following complaints the Prosecutor General found no violation

Internet hate speech: 80% of investigated cases of hate speech are on the ground of sexual orientation

The decision of Vilnius district prosecutor’s office to terminate the pre-trial investigation on a comment posted by an internet user in September 2009 under an article about a lesbian couple in Norway who have taken a Lithuanian boy into custody: “Lesbians and fags must be shot at the wall like the Jews by the Germans. This caste must be destroyed, crushed without mercy”.

Prosecutor Darius Brubulis, who investigated the complaint of the Lithuanian Gay League for a year and a half, failed to find any basis for conclusion that the suspect had committed a criminal offence with direct intent.

LGL fears that the decision of the prosecutor may become a bad example to other prosecutors, which, in turn, might spark even more hatred in public. Therefore, we appealed the decision. Presently prosecutors are investigating four cases of threats in internet comments directed personally at the leader of the Lithuanian Gay League.

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