German authorities tried to open a criminal investigation into a social media user on Gab who allegedly called a left-wing female politician “fat,” but the platform refused to comply with their excessive demands to reveal the person's identity, the platform told Fox News Digital.
The Federal Criminal Office (Bundeskriminalamt-BKA) contacted Gab about a user who was insulting the weight of politician Ricarda Lang, a leading figure in Germany's green party, and requested information that could help identify the person so that a criminal investigation can continue, as they suspect the person to be resident in Germany.
Torba Called it a German request. “One of the most ridiculous overseas data requests Gab has received…” [T]I want the personal information of users who call female politicians fat to be made public.”
Gab's official response was to tell the German government “it should give in,” CEO Andrew Truba told Fox News Digital.
“We are committed to the principles of free speech and will not violate our users' privacy or civil liberties. We firmly reject requests from governments, including the German government, to suppress free speech or violate our users' privacy rights for speech protected by U.S. law. In this case, we will not provide any user data related to the alleged crimes against German politicians. So you can be fooled,” Gab said.
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Ricarda Lang is a German politician who has been co-chair of Alliance 90/The Greens since January 2022. (Fox News Digital – Hannah Grossman | Getty)
Germany has enacted some of the world's toughest laws regarding social media posts and is cracking down on hate speech, an effort that has accelerated since the passage of the Network Enforcement Act (NetzDG) in 2017. The law requires social media companies to quickly remove illegal content, such as hate speech, defamation, or incitement to violence.
“In this particular case, Gab users”[redacted]In a formal request to Gab, the BKA reportedly said that the site had “published two posts that sexualised the German politician 'Ricarda Lang' and denigrated her weight.”
German authorities requested the individual's mobile phone, email, IP address, payment methods, past and current usernames, name, date of birth, postal code, personal ID documents, etc.
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Germany argued that the posts, which attacked the politician's weight and posted graphic memes, violated insult laws.
Section 185 of the German Criminal Code This includes derogatory remarks, libelous comments, or statements that show disrespect or disrespect. This includes abusive language or comments that belittle someone.
“The penalty for insult is imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or a fine if the insult is committed publicly,” the law states.
Fox News Digital reached out repeatedly to BKA for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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