What is hate speech?
[Warning: this text may contain offensive words.]
Hate speech consists of statements that attack or insult a person or group. According to the UN, it is any form of communication that uses derogatory or discriminatory language against a person or group based on their religion, nationality, so-called race, skin colour, national or ethnic origin, gender or other element of their identity. Such statements are punishable by law if they exceed the legal limits of freedom of speech.
Examples of hate speech
Hate speech can take various forms: posts on social media, texts or images in print or online, radio or TV broadcasts, videos, oral statements, etc. The following examples qualify as hate speech:
- Football supporters shout at a Moroccan man in the street: "Hey Mohammed, go back to Marrakesh, we don't want Muslims in our country."
- A man applies stickers with far-right slogans such as "our socialism is national" on road signs and on the windows of the Museum Kazerne Dossin.
- A man posts on Facebook that "he wants to bring back gas chambers, see Jews put in them and that Adolf Hitler was doing great work."
Where does free speech end and hate speech begin?
Free speech is one of the most fundamental human rights. Freedom of expression and information is, therefore, explicitly protected in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) and in the Belgian Constitution.
The European Court of Human Rights defines this as follows:
“Freedom of expression and information is one of the pillars of a democratic society. It applies not only to 'information' or 'ideas' that are favourably received or that are considered innocent or indifferent, but also to those that 'shock, disturb or hurt' the State or any other group among the population.”
Freedom of expression, therefore, does not only apply to innocent, conventional or banal utterances. There must also be room, in democratic societies, for dissenting, loud voices that 'shock, disturb or hurt'.
Freedom of expression and information has a flipside and also comes with duties and responsibilities. As a result, that freedom may be subject to restrictions. Certain expressions that cross the threshold of 'shocking, upsetting or hurting' may be punishable by law, as they harm society.
When is hate speech a criminal offence?
Hate speech is punishable if it exceeds the legal limits of freedom of expression. It is then a criminal offence. In Belgium, the following forms of expression are punishable:
- Publicly inciting (encouraging, provoking, etc.) discrimination, segregation, hatred or violence against persons or groups because of one or more protected characteristics (skin colour, disability, age, etc.).
- Spreading beliefs about racial superiority or racial hatred in public.
- Belonging to or participating in a group or association that repeatedly advocates discrimination or segregation in public.
- Publicly denying, approving, grossly minimising or attempting to justify the Holocaust or other recognised genocides
Report discrimination
Do you feel you have experienced or witnessed discrimination? Report it online or call the toll-free number 0800 12 800 on weekdays between 9.30 a.m. and 1 p.m.