Supreme court of Netherlands rules insulting islam is not equal to insulting muslims

In a victory for freedom of speech the Dutch Supreme Court ruled in favor of a man who stuck a poster in his window with the text: 'Stop the tumour that is called Islam'. The court ruled the man did not insult muslims by insulting the religion of islam.

This is definitely good news for Geert Wilders upcoming court case. NIS News

THE HAGUE, 11/03/09 - The Supreme Court yesterday produced an important ruling in principle in favour of freedom of speech. The highest court of the Netherlands acquitted a man of insulting Muslims although he dubbed Islam a tumour.

The Supreme Court quashed a ruling by an appeal court in Den Bosch. As had a district court earlier, the appeal court did find the man guilty. Yesterday's acquittal can have consequences for all future court cases on insulting followers of a faith or ideology, including the notorious case against MP Geert Wilders.

According to the country's highest court, people expressing themselves offensively about a religion are not automatically guilty of insulting its followers, even if the followers feel insulted. "The statement must unmistakeably refer to a certain group of people who differentiate themselves from others by their religion," ruled the Supreme Court.