Related Case: Prosecutor v. Räsänen HELSINKI – In a victory for free speech the Helsinki Court of Appeal has dismissed all charges against Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen and Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola who were both tried for “hate speech” in August after publicly expressing their Christian beliefs In a unanimous ruling that upheld the district court’s March 2022 unanimous acquittal the appeal court dismissed the arguments of the state prosecutor on the basis of the evidence received at the main hearing to assess the case in any respect differently from the District Court There is therefore no reason to alter the final result of the District Court’s judgment.” The court has fully endorsed and upheld the decision of the district court which recognized everyone’s right to free speech,” said Räsänen after her victory “It isn’t a crime to tweet a Bible verse or to engage in public discourse with a Christian perspective The attempts made to prosecute me for expressing my beliefs have resulted in an immensely trying four years but my hope is that the result will stand as a key precedent to protect the human right to free speech I sincerely hope other innocent people will be spared the same ordeal for simply voicing their convictions.” The court has ordered the prosecution to pay tens of thousands in legal fees to cover costs incurred by both defendants The prosecution could appeal a final time to the Supreme Court Räsänen, Finland’s former Interior Minister and a grandmother of 11, was formally charged with “agitation against a minority group” in 2021 under a section of the Finnish criminal code titled “war crimes and crimes against humanity” for sharing her Christian beliefs on marriage and sexual ethics in a 2019 tweet in addition to a 2019 live radio debate and 2004 church pamphlet Pohjola was charged for publishing Räsänen’s 2004 pamphlet The case has garnered global media attention as human rights experts voiced concern over the threat posed to free speech “At the heart of the prosecutor’s examination of Räsänen was this: Would she recant her beliefs The answer was no—she would not deny the teachings of her faith,” said ADF International Executive Director Paul Coleman “The cross-examination bore all the resemblance of a ‘heresy’ trial of the Middle Ages; it was implied that Räsänen had ‘blasphemed’ against the dominant orthodoxies of the day.” What happened to Päivi should not happen in any free society.” Räsänen’s legal defense highlighted the strong protection that freedom of speech enjoys in international law in addition to being integral to Finnish democracy “there is no reason to alter the final result of the District Court’s judgment,” which had recognized that while some may object to Räsänen’s statements “there must be an overriding social reason for interfering with and restricting freedom of expression.” The district court had concluded that there was no such justification stating that “it is not for the District Court to interpret biblical concepts.” “While we celebrate this monumental victory, we also remember that it comes after four years of police investigations, criminal indictments, prosecutions, and court hearings,” said Coleman, who authored the book “Censored: How European Hate Speech Laws are Threatening Freedom of Speech.” “We applaud the Helsinki Court of Appeal’s ruling in this case It is a momentous decision upholding the fundamental right to free speech all should be allowed to share their beliefs without fear of censorship Criminalizing speech through so-called ‘hate-speech’ laws shuts down important public debates and poses a grave threat to our democracies We are relieved to see courts enforce the rule of law when state authorities overstep by seeking to penalize and censor statements that they dislike.” ADF International will host a press conference on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. EST. Räsänen, Pohjola, and Coleman will be available for questions after their statements. Participate online at this link To learn more details about the case and to support Räsänen, visit https://adfinternational.org/FreeSpeechOnTrial Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom Defense filed in Bible tweet ‘hate speech’ case at Finland’s Supreme Court Prosecutor appeals Bible-tweet case to Finnish Supreme Court House members condemn prosecution of Finnish politician on trial again for Bible tweet Finnish MP wins on all charges in major free speech trial What Is Freedom of Speech? Finnish MP Päivi Räsänen Still in Court After ‘Hate Crime’ Charge for Quoting the Bible What Is Alliance Defending Freedom? Prosecutor v. Räsänen View Profile View Profile ADF is the world's largest legal organizationcommitted to protecting religious freedom,free speech © 2025 Alliance Defending Freedom is a registered 501(C)(3) Charity. All rights reserved promoted by the Association of United Residents of Apelação (a town in Portugal) and the initial idea was to build a small crochet tree 10 or 12 feet tall the tree grew as the number of volunteer knitters grew This surpassed the Guinness World Record held by a crocheted tree measuring 52.2 feet that was created last year in Ecuador The ultimate goal of this project was to get the elderly women of the village out of their houses to interact with each other after two years of confinement due to the pandemic according to the coordinator of the project The response of the population was spectacular: the team ended up being formed by more than 70 women aged 11 to 88 years old Every afternoon they gathered in the assembly hall of the parish of Apelação and crocheted they knitted more than 9,000 multicolored pieces that they then assembled to make a spectacular Christmas tree that was inaugurated on December 3 As they explain on their Facebook page the association aims to "promote and ensure the quality of life of the inhabitants of the parish of Apelação through the continuous improvement of living conditions promoting actions that include support and protection the Association has a special concern for the most socially excluded sectors of the population and consequently works to achieve integration of the immigrant population and ethnic minorities The plan worked; women of all ages and from different cultures have participated in this Christmas project They’ve been involved in intergenerational and intercultural interactions they’ve established bridges of communication and they’ve combated the isolation of many women who The women have strengthened their bonds of friendship thanks to working together for 211 days including more than 5,000 hours together during which they got to know each other better and experienced moments of companionship and mutual appreciation The work of joining the small crocheted squares has helped unite the community of Apelação This large tree – more than 55 feet tall – which now holds the title of being the largest handmade tree in the world is the image of the community spirit and inclusiveness that has presided over its construction Many local businesses and institutions sponsored the project and provided the means and funds to achieve this goal climbing up the triangular metal structure that gives shape to the colorful tree in order to hang the fabric An endearing children's choir and the Municipal Orchestra of Loures the municipality to which Apelação belongs the project's volunteers also organized a Christmas craft sale next to the tree to raise funds and make food baskets for the most needy in the community Articles like these are sponsored free for every Catholic through the support of generous readers just like you Please make a tax-deductible donation today Help us continue to bring the Gospel to people everywhere through uplifting Catholic news Ripple is considering filing a cross-appeal in response to the SEC’s appeal against the court’s judgment on August 7, which ordered Ripple to pay $125 million to resolve charges over the institutional sales of XRP tokens, said Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty The penalty although more than Ripple’s suggested $10 million is significantly lower than the nearly $2 billion initially demanded by the SEC which included extensive disgorgement and prejudgment interest The court also ruled that XRP tokens sold on secondary markets do not qualify as securities it is unclear whether the SEC will contest Ripple’s fine imposition or the court’s ruling that secondary market sales of XRP tokens are non-securities With the SEC’s decision to proceed with its appeal Ripple is evaluating a countermove in the ongoing SEC litigation over XRP This could involve Ripple appealing Judge Torres’ ruling regarding the sale of XRP to institutions as investment contracts or challenging the $125 million fine Both appeals would be consolidated into a single case before the Court of Appeals Ripple has a 14-day window starting tomorrow to file its cross-appeal Alderoty said he was disappointed by the SEC’s decision He criticized the SEC’s litigation strategy as prolonging “embarrassment.” “The Court already rejected the SEC’s suggestion that Ripple acted recklessly and there were no allegations of fraud and there were no victims or losses,” Alderoty stated “Instead of faithfully applying the law continues to engage in litigation warfare against the industry We are evaluating whether to file a cross-appeal the SEC’s lawsuit has been irrational and misguided from the start and we’re ready to prove that yet again in the appellate court,” he added The appeal was filed just an hour after Gurbir Grewal, who directs the SEC’s enforcement actions, announced his resignation It’s unclear whether Grewal’s departure was connected to the case’s handling the Second Circuit will not rule until January 2026 For the #XRPHolders SEC likely to seek permissible 30 day extension It's opening brief will be due around the same time — Fred Rispoli (@freddyriz) October 2, 2024 Don’t have an account? 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' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " The SEC has officially filed a Notice of Appeal in its legal battle against Ripple Labs and its executives SEC files appeal in Ripple case, putting XRP ETF on hold pic.twitter.com/pJlqh4PVyW — Crypto Briefing (@Crypto_Briefing) October 2, 2024 This move effectively halts progress on the recently proposed XRP ETF by Bitwise Bitwise filed for the first-ever spot XRP ETF on September 30 just days before the SEC’s deadline to appeal the court ruling in favor of Ripple with the SEC now challenging the final judgment from August 7 the legal battle over whether XRP is considered a security is far from over The SEC’s appeal could extend Ripple’s legal saga well into 2025 creating a cloud of regulatory uncertainty over XRP and any financial products associated with it The final judgment in the Ripple case had ruled in favor of Ripple Labs allowing XRP to be traded without being classified as a security This was seen as a significant victory for Ripple and the wider crypto industry the SEC’s decision to appeal the ruling has put that victory on hold with XRP’s status once again in question had previously warned that an SEC appeal would significantly reduce the likelihood of a successful XRP ETF stating that the chances would drop to “near zero” if the appeal were filed Bitwise’s spot XRP ETF was expected to offer institutional and retail investors exposure to XRP through a regulated financial product the ETF’s approval process is likely delayed indefinitely The ongoing legal battle will likely keep XRP’s regulatory status—and its market performance—uncertain for the foreseeable future The Ripple case has become one of the most significant legal battles in the crypto world and the SEC’s appeal only adds more complexity investors and the crypto industry will have to wait for the courts to decide XRP’s future as both sides prepare for what could be an extended legal battle The legal uncertainty surrounding XRP makes it unlikely that the Bitwise XRP ETF or similar financial products will move forward until there is a final resolution the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court handed down another ruling ordering the evacuation of four families (from the Shehadeh family) from their home in Batan Al-Hawa of Silwan Since the beginning of 2020 to the present day judgments have been given in 14 eviction claims of settlers against families in the Batan Al-Hawa in Silwan and Sheikh Jarrah the Magistrate’s Court ordered the evacuation of 36 families with 165 people 7 cases in the Batan Al-Hawa for the evacuation of 107 people from 20 families; 7 cases in Sheikh Jarrah for the evacuation of 58 people from 13 families All the families have filed appeals and are in various stages of hearing in the district court Dozens more families are in proceedings and may receive evictions soon we might see massive evictions of families in the coming months Peace Now: “The story here is not legal but political The court is only the tool by which settlers use with the close assistance of state authorities to commit the crime of displacing an entire community and replacing it with settlement The Israeli government and settlers have no problem to displace thousands of Palestinians in the name of “the Right of Return” to properties before 1948 while they strongly claim that the millions of Israelis living in Palestinian properties before 1948 cannot be evicted Since the evacuation of the Mughrabi neighborhood for the purpose of expanding the Western Wall plaza in 1967 there has been no such deportation in Jerusalem On the table of the prosecution in the International Court of Justice in The Hague is a complaint about the displacement process led by the government in Sheikh Jarrah and in Batan Al-Hawa The government can still stop this injustice” Read a thorough explanation on how the government can prevent the evictions in East Jerusalem The eviction lawsuits against the families of Skafi (13 individuals) Ja’uni (2 individuals) Abu Hasna (6 individuals) and Alkurd (6 individuals) were filed by a company called “Nahalat Shimon” owned by a foreign company registered in Delaware (USA) which represents settlers seeking to build a large settlement in Sheikh Jarrah The settlers purchased the land from two Jewish associations the Sephardi Community Committee and the Knesset Israel Committee which claimed to have purchased the land at the end of the 19th century The Jordanians designated the land for the resettlement of dozens of Palestinian refugee families who exchanged their refugee status for homes in the newly-built neighborhood in Sheikh Jarrah the Jewish organizations recovered the ownership rights of the land based on the Legal and Administrative Matters Law (see below) and began to demand that the refugee families vacate their homes the associations were exercising the “right of return” of Jews to assets taken in 1948 (a right not afforded to Palestinians) the Nahalat Shimon settler company has filed numerous lawsuits against dozens of families in Sheikh Jarrah in the Karem Ja’uni area which are in various stages of court hearings eviction procedures against the Sabbagh family were renewed after losing in court to the settlers in a similar lawsuit Background: The threat of eviction in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan The houses in Karem Ja’uni were built in the 1950s by the Jordanian Housing Ministry as part of a refugee rehabilitation project in which 30 houses were constructed in Sheikh Jarrah for refugee families in return for waiving their status as refugees It should be noted that the process of registering the houses in the names of the refugees was not completed before 1967 After the area was transferred to Israeli control in the 1967 War the Jewish associations could take advantage of the lack of registration and registered the land in their name based on the Legal and Administrative Matters Law (1970) the Jordanian Government and the residents In 1970, the Legal and Administrative Matters Law was enacted in Israel that Jews who lost their property in East Jerusalem in 1948 could receive it back to their ownership It is important to mention that Israeli law (the Absentee Property Law of 1950) does not allow Palestinians who lost their assets in Israel in 1948 to receive them back and permits the state to bring the assets into the state’s possession Israeli law provides for a different law for Jews and Palestinians the implementation of the law leads to the evacuation of Palestinian refugees from their homes and in effect makes them refugees for the second time the government of Israel made sure to compensate all the Jews who lost their property in 1948 and gave them alternative assets inside Israel Hence the owners of the properties are entitled under the Legal and Administrative Matters Law to double compensation for the loss in 1948 For an analysis of the law and its implementation, see here. The Palestinian refugees families in Sheikh Jarrah had owned houses and lands in Israel before 1948 but as a result of the war became refugees According to the Absentee Property Law (1950) they are not entitled to receive or return to their property those families attempted to rehabilitate themselves in exchange for giving up their status as a refugee family on the basis of the discriminatory law enacted by the Knesset those families are about to become refugees again where all that has changed is the geopolitical situation and the law enacted by Israel Demonstration at the District Court against the displacements in Sheikh Jarrah © 2025 Peace Now | Sitemap | Accessibility Notice Design & UX: Matnas Interactive | Charts: Highcharts