The instigation of hatred: questions of legal evaluation and procedural issues

Abstract

Considering the infringements upon the principle of equality caused by hate crimes, as well as the negative impact of such crimes not only on their victims but also on other persons within the same group of vulnerable people, the authors of this paper analyse hate speech as a criminally punishable act. The analysis of this issue is of essential importance as hate speech manifests on the internet, often via comments made online, a worrying issue as hate speech is therefore often tolerated. This article raises the question of the delimitation of hate speech from hate crime; the authors present an analytical overview of national and international case law, providing an insight into the process of distinguishing hate speech from a person’s right to exercise their freedom of self-expression. A separate section covers the challenges that law enforcement authorities face when investigating incidents of hate speech online, where criminal activities often trespass the borders of a single state and their investigation requires tools of international cooperation to receive or transfer electronic evidence.