Protesters caught burning the flag of the European Union could face a three-year prison sentence, after German MPs broadened existing laws to make the defilement of a foreign flag equal to the crime of defiling the German flag.
German MPs voted on Thursday to expand the existing legislation, which also prohibits the defaming of the European Union’s anthem.
Federal Justice Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD) said, “burning flags in public has nothing to do with peaceful protest.” Instead, it stokes up “hatred, anger and aggression and hurts the feelings of many people.”
According to BBC News, the legislation comes after Social Democrat complaints about protesters’ burning of the Israeli flag in Berlin back in 2017.
