Calling Jehovah's Witnesses a “destructive sect” is not a crime nor can it be an attack on the honor of this religious confession. This has been estimated by the Court of First Instance number 6 of Torrejón de Ardoz, in Madrid, and has rejected in its entirety the claim that the religious organization against the Spanish Association of Victims of Jehovah's Witnesses (AEVTJ), for violation of the right to honor, in which he requested that the association be eliminated, that its website be deleted and that the comments and information that, in his opinion, the members of this group make public cease, for attacking the honor of the religious confession and its faithful and create great discredit.
Judge Raquel Chacón Campollo dismisses the lawsuit, understanding that the statements, experiences and comments of the AEVTJ are protected by the right to freedom of expression and information, as it is a matter of general interest, and the requirements of truthfulness and confidentiality are met. proportionality and absence of insulting intent.
In her resolution, an appeal can be filed against the resolution before the Provincial Court of Madrid. The judge not only protects the continuity of the association, but also certifies that sectarian practices in the organization of worship can be publicly discussed.
The ruling states that the expressions object of this litigation in reference to whether the organization is “a destructive sect” are not, at all, trivial, since “it is about the attribution of serious and serious consequences to behaviors based on beliefs of the plaintiff confession ».
Specifically, it cites “social death, ostracism, mental disorders, self-harming ideas or acts, discrimination, concealment of possible crimes, omission of vital medical treatment or sectarian behavior,” among others. Given this, he emphasizes that this does not directly mean that they are insulting, even if “the religious confession considers them degrading and insulting.”
In the argument, the judge states that the objective of the association is not the extinction of the religious confession, but rather its adaptation “to what the association considers fairer norms and to inform whoever wishes to approach it of what the defendant institution understands as consequences.” of that approach, which can be negative for people's lives.
Damage to the experience as faithful
Regarding the classification of victims, the magistrate points out that “many people claim to have suffered many damages as a result of their experience as followers of a religious confession, and prohibiting this term in the name of the Association would be an unjustified censorship for these people.” who freely express their opinion based on first-person experiences.
It points out that all the declarants proposed by the Association considered themselves victims, and have been accredited, at least as truthful, practices that “are widely carried out and generate a lot of pain, and mentally destabilize the people targeted by them,” such as the expulsion and everything that entails.”
“These are behaviors that generate damage, due to recklessness, without malicious intent, since, as the defendant's deponents also admitted, the majority of people do so convinced that they act well and are good people,” adds the resolution. .
Thus, it emphasizes that although “the plaintiff entity alleges that it is contrary to its honor, greater protection deserves the freedom of those who consider that they have suffered multiple harm, to group together in an association that incorporates the word or term victim in its public name.” .
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