Our View: Anti-LGBTI comments are nasty but are part of free speech

Ombudswoman Maria Stylianou Lottides on Tuesday urged the authorities to take action against hate speech directed at the LGBTIQ+ community. She was responding to screenshots of such posts in the comments’ sections of news websites and on social media. Some of these posts were examples of hate speech, saying that gays “should all be shot, beaten or buried in a ditch.”

Stylianou Lottides said: “It is important and necessary that the severity of homophobic and transphobic cases is not downplayed or covered up by describing them as ‘one off’. They need to be recognised and treated for what they are, so as to remind and underline the state’s zero tolerance policy over homophobic/transphobic crimes.” Whether the authorities actually take action against such forms of hate speech, she did not say.

Her office had also received complaints about extreme hate speech and racism which she said was observed quite frequently in Cyprus. Having studied online posts, the ombudswoman said she reached the conclusion that they contained views that, irrespective of their intentions, were offensive and condescending towards certain groups.

In this regard, Stylianou Lottides may be on shaky ground. The reality is that offensive and condescending comments, although they might not be very nice for their target, are part of free speech, the cornerstone of any democracy. Politicians, journalists, business leaders, writers, union chiefs and many others often cause offence or talk condescendingly about groups of people or individuals, but this cannot qualify as hate speech.

Is it hate speech when people supporting a Cyprus settlement are dismissed as unpatriotic? Is it hate speech if rejectionists are accused of surrendering occupied Cyprus to the Turks? No, this is part of public debate, which can occasionally turn nasty, but this is perfectly acceptable in a democracy. People cause offence when engaging in debate or taking a stand on something they feel strongly about. The exchange of insults, for example, might be disapproved by many, but can also be witty and entertaining.

We cannot stop people talking freely because they might hurt someone’s feelings, as is becoming the trend in many democratic societies. Are we going to define what constitutes insensitivity and then make it illegal? Is free speech going to be restricted so it does not cause offence or hurt someone’s feelings? There will always be someone to take offence about something said publicly or posted on social media, but safeguarding the right to free speech is essential.

The authorities should clamp down on hate speech and incitement to hatred, but there is a line to be drawn between these and comments made, in the spirit of free speech, that may cause offence to some.