Priest in Spain could face prison under ‘hate speech’ law

A Catholic priest in Spain could face up to three years in prison after making remarks critical of Islam. 

The Provincial Court of Málaga on Oct. 1 found the Rev. Custodio Ballester of Barcelona guilty of “Islamophobic” comments he made in a talk show and in writing. He awaits sentencing.

The verdict immediately sparked alarm over Spain’s commitment to free expression.

“The survival of freedom of expression in today’s Spain depends on the ruling in this case,” Ballester told Catholic News Agency (CNA). “Otherwise, we’ll head toward a new Cuban dictatorship – one where you arrest people for what you said as well as for what you thought, if it differed from what Fidel Castro decided.”

Ballester, a former special forces soldier, told CNA that his statements never contained discriminatory or hateful language. He told journalists and supporters outside the court he felt calm about the verdict.

“This is the final hearing, and now we await the result,” he said. “In the Spanish army’s special forces, we said, ‘Prepare for the worst. The easy stuff has already planned for.’ That’s why I’m calm. If everything goes well, I’ll be even happier.”

The Provincial Court of Málaga heard that Ballester made the comments in a 2017 online interview on talk show “La Ratonera” and in earlier writings, including a 2016 article titled, “The Impossible Dialogue with Islam.”

Responding to a pastoral letter from Cardinal Juan José Omella of Barcelona that called for Christian-Muslim dialogue, Ballester had written, “This renewed revival of Christian-Muslim dialogue, paralyzed by the alleged ‘imprudence’ of the beloved Benedict XVI, is far from a reality. Islam does not allow for dialogue. You either believe or you are an infidel who must be subdued one way or another.”

The priest denounced persecution of Christians by Muslims in countries like Nigeria, Syria and Bangladesh.

The Association of Spanish Muslims Against Islamophobia filed a complaint, triggering prosecution under Spain’s controversial hate-speech law. Two others face accusations of making similar remarks in the same online broadcast: the Rev. Jesús Calvo and journalist Armando Robles.

The Spanish Penal Code’s Article 510 criminalizes public expressions that incite hatred, hostility, discrimination or violence against groups based on religion, race and other categories. The law, introduced in 1995 and expanded in 2015 to include online offenses, punishes those who publicly encourage or promote hatred. Penalties range from one to four years in prison, and the prosecutor in Ballester’s case has requested a three-year term.

Nearly 30,000 people have signed a protest petition by Christian advocacy group Abogados Cristianos (Christian Attorneys). The lawyers’ group called the court verdict a “double standard of a law that is useless for all of us who receive attacks and humiliations because of our Christian faith.”

“They will never censor the criticism, disrespect or continuous offenses that broadcast from the television sets towards Catholics,” Abogados Cristianos said in an online explanation for the petition (translated). “However, no one can doubt the behavior of certain groups that they are interested in protecting and glorifying. If we tolerate that this injustice is committed with Father Custos [Custodio], we will be setting a fatal precedent. That is why we have launched this campaign to ask Miguel Ángel Aguilar, Hate Crimes prosecutor, to withdraw the accusation against this priest.”

If the court upholds the sentence, Ballester indicated he will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, continuing his fight for religious freedom.