Advocating for freedom of expression

by Karl-Jürgen Müller

According to German constitutional law (Article 5 of the Basic Law), freedom of expression includes freedom of opinion and freedom of information for everyone, freedom of the press and freedom of reporting, the prohibition of censorship, and freedom of art and science. The fact that these human and civil rights have been increasingly disregarded in recent years by German state authorities and by media outlets and NGOs working closely with these authorities has been met with growing consternation and criticism, not only in Germany but also internationally.

Irene Khan, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, who is assigned to the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), therefore travelled to Germany from 26 January to 6 February 2026 and met with numerous representatives of German ministries and other national authorities, representatives of various political parties, judges, prosecutors and lawyers, representatives of state authorities, state media authorities and the media, NGOs and journalists, academics and many other individuals about the situation of freedom of expression in Germany. It was the first visit by a UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression to Germany since the office was created in 1993.
    On 6 February, Irene Khan presented her “preliminary observations” during a half-hour press conference in Berlin,¹ which are also available in written form, including a German translation.² She will present her detailed report and recommendations to the Human Rights Council in June of this year.
    In diplomatic language, the Special Rapporteur acknowledges the high constitutional status of freedom of expression in Germany and the German state’s officially expressed position on this fundamental and human right.
    However, she also states: “Freedom of expression [in Germany] is a shrinking space, undermined by several negative trends”.
    Admittedly, there has also been an increase in the abuse of freedom of expression and a “deep rift in the understanding of what constitutes freedom of expression” caused by social polarisation. However, government agencies have responded inappropriately to this situation: “Many of these measures – ranging from heightened protection of officials who are confronted with public criticism to blanket bans on slogans related to pro-Palestinian protests and surveillance of organizations on vague, undefined grounds of “extremism” – are inconsistent with international human rights standards. They have generated uncertainty as to the line between protected and prohibited speech, and encourage stigmatization and self-censorship.” (emphasis km)
    The UN Special Rapporteur warns against “an overly criminalized and security-oriented approach to handling political expression and activism”. This “risks narrowing the space for diverse, meaningful democratic debate, accelerating polarization, and increasing the potential for the public to lose trust in those same democratic values and institutions that the government is seeking to protect”.
    From the perspective of international human rights standards, the government has a dual responsibility “to uphold freedom of expression and participation in public life on an equal basis, without discrimination, while at the same time ensuring that the most vulnerable in society are protected from hate crimes, vilification, and exclusion. In democratic society tolerance of diverse views and criticism, especially of public figures, must be respected, including for speech that is ‘lawful but awful’ ”.
    The Special Rapporteur criticises in detail the response of the German authorities to Palestinian actions following the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023 and Israel’s war against the people in the Gaza Strip. Other special rapporteurs and she herself had “previously raised many of these concerns with the German government, including restrictions and bans of peaceful protests, arbitrary arrests and detentions, excessive use of force, threats of deportation of some individuals and raids on the homes of activists and human rights defenders”.
    “Scores of conferences, lectures, concerts, and cultural events in solidarity with Palestine have been cancelled, postponed, or restricted. Speakers and scholars from Israel have also been vilified, cancelled, or excluded simply on account of their nationality. Journalists, academics, activists, artists, lawyers, politicians, and civil servants have sought to self-censor, especially on social media. This has all led to a dampening of public participation, shrinking discourse in academia and the arts, and a general climate of distrust, uncertainty, and tension.”
    A study conducted in September 2025 by researchers at the Free University of Berlin found that “almost 85 percent of German academics have felt an increased threat to academic freedom since October 2023. Some academics particularly those without German citizenship have reported uncertainty about their job security, an inability for frank debate among colleagues, and a growing sense of general distrust that universities are becoming “securitized”, with law enforcement presence an increasing aspect of events, all contributing to a considerable chilling of both research and expression in academia”.
    The Special Rapporteur also criticises the “use of anti-terrorism laws to broadly restrict or prohibit the content of Palestinian advocacy. For instance, hundreds of activists have been arrested for uttering a slogan³ that has been determined to belong to Hamas, which has been designated by the German government to be a terrorist organization. Not only has that interpretation of the slogan been challenged by some experts, a general ban or criminalization for merely uttering a slogan in all circumstances is disproportionate and not in line with international human rights standards”.
    Various German authorities at local and state level tended to “confuse and conflate criticism of policies and actions of the [Israeli] government, a legitimate exercise of freedom of expression, with antisemitism […]”.
    The rapporteur emphasises that anti-Semitism is indeed “a real and growing problem in Germany”. However, the fight against anti-Semitism must be “framed according to international human rights standards.” Otherwise, there is a risk “that discrimination against one vulnerable group will be replaced with discrimination against another group, which, far from reducing antisemitism, will fuel more hatred and intolerance”.
     In her “preliminary observations”, Irene Khan addresses further points that are worth reading, reflecting on and discussing. At this point, the first conclusion is that it is very much to be hoped that the German authorities and the media and NGOs working with them will take the UN Special Rapporteur’s warnings seriously and initiate a change of course. A few leading German media outlets – which is encouraging – have reported on the issue, albeit not in detail, but without polemics.⁴ And above all, committed citizens can refer to Irene Khan’s words. •

¹https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amv2EDTXmew&t=71s

²www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/statements/20260206-eom-stm-europe-central-asia-region-sr-protection-right-en.pdf dated 6 February 2026. The citation does not use gender-neutral language.

³ The slogan is: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

⁴ Reports appeared in the weekly newspaper Die Zeit, the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”, the “Handelsblatt” and on Deutschlandfunk radio