Enlarge image
Doda is a well-known pop and rock singer in Poland
Photo: Gallo Images/Getty Images
She doesn't believe in the Bible, the singer Dorota Rabczewska, aka Doda, announced in a TV interview in Poland in 2009.
Scientific discoveries convinced her more than "incredible biblical stories" whose authors were under the influence of alcohol and drugs.
Two private individuals felt their religious feelings were hurt and sued the 38-year-old woman.
Polish courts upheld the lawsuit and fined the singer for blasphemy.
A decade later, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has now dealt with the case.
The judges ruled on Thursday in Strasbourg that the verdict violates the right to freedom of expression.
Although Doda's comments were drastic, they did not incite hatred or violence.
The singer only answered questions about her life in a frivolous way.
The country of Poland must now pay the woman 10,000 euros in compensation.
Similar laws in other European countries
The Blasphemy Law, as Article 196 of the Polish Code is also known, prohibits "attacking religious feelings by public defilement," and convicts can face a fine or two years in prison.
Even if that seems like a contradiction to the fundamental European right to freedom of expression, there are similar laws in other European countries.
In Germany, for example, there is Paragraph 166, a remnant of earlier blasphemy laws.
It is intended to protect "the content of religious or ideological beliefs" from insults - blasphemy is therefore also considered a criminal offense in Germany, provided it disturbs the public peace.
ves/dpa
