The two eldest daughters of Christian couple, Daniel and Bianca Samson, were seized by Swedish child protection services after the eldest made a false report at school—triggered by her parents’ refusal to allow her a mobile phone and the use of makeup—a claim she later retracted, but nonetheless prompted allegations of “religious extremism” from the state.
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Speaking today at the OSCE Warsaw Human Dimension Conference, Lidia Rieder, Legal Officer for ADF International warned that the government of Türkiye is systematically targeting Christians under the guise of “national security,” expelling hundreds of foreign believers and leaving local congregations without spiritual leadership.
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A US State Department bureau said on Wednesday that the criminal prosecution of Finnish MP Päivi Räsänen “is baseless” and tweeted a Bible verse in support.
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he challenge brought by top EU official and former Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief outside the EU, Dr. Ján Figeľ to the European Court of Human Rights is ruled inadmissible on narrow grounds.
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HELSINKI (25 August 2025) – The Finnish Supreme Court has set the date for an oral hearing in the free speech case involving Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen and Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola. Both were previously unanimously acquitted of “hate speech” charges by two lower courts after publicly expressing their Christian beliefs. With the hearing scheduled for 30th October 2025, the state prosecutor’s censorship campaign against Räsänen and Pohjola will enter its seventh year.
“It is shocking that after two unanimous acquittals, Päivi Räsänen is again being dragged to court to defend her fundamental right to freedom of speech. As we have warned for years, vaguely worded ‘hate speech’ laws allow ideological prosecutions like this to take place. We stand behind Päivi and we will continue to work toward the bigger victory when such ludicrous cases are no longer brought. In a free and democratic society, all should be allowed to share their beliefs without fear of punishment.
Räsänen, who is a medical doctor, Finland’s former Interior Minister, and a parliamentarian since 1995, was formally charged with “agitation against a minority group” in 2021. She was charged under a section of the Finnish criminal code titled “war crimes and crimes against humanity” for sharing her Christian beliefs on marriage and sexual ethics in a 2019 tweet, as well as a 2019 live radio debate and 2004 church pamphlet. Bishop Pohjola was charged for publishing Räsänen’s 2004 pamphlet.
The high-profile lower court trials received significant global attention, particularly after the prosecution attacked core Christian teachings and cross-examined Räsänen and the Bishop on their theology in the court hearings.
“It isn’t a crime to tweet a Bible verse, or to engage in public discourse from a Christian perspective. The attempts to criminalize me for expressing my beliefs have resulted in an immensely trying last few years, but I still hope for a positive result that will stand as a key precedent to protect the human right to free speech in Finland,” said Räsänen, grandmother of twelve.
Two lower instance courts had previously acquitted Räsänen and Pohjola in April 2022 and November 2023 of all three charges. The prosecutor appealed for a third time, taking the charges concerning the booklet and the tweet to the Supreme Court, which will hear oral arguments on 30th October 2025.
Coordinated by ADF International, Räsänen’s legal defence will continue to highlight the strong protection that freedom of speech enjoys in international law, in addition to being integral to Finnish democracy.
The defence previously submitted to the court that Räsänen’s use of the word “sin” in her tweet, which the prosecution had highlighted as “insulting” and therefore unlawful, was quoted directly from the Bible, and any judgment condemning its usage would directly condemn the Bible itself.
The Bible on Trial
During the high-profile trial before the Court of Appeal in 2023, the prosecution frequently attacked core Christian teachings and cross-examined Räsänen – who is one of Finland’s longest-standing members of parliament – and the Bishop on their theology.
The Finnish State prosecutor, Anu Mantila, claimed that, “You can cite the Bible, but it is Räsänen’s interpretation and opinion about the Bible verses that are criminal”.
To learn more details about the case and to support Päivi Räsänen, visit www.ADFinternational.org/FreeSpeechOnTrial
Images for free use in print or online in relation to this story only with credit to ADF International.
(from left to right: Päivi Räsänen, Räsänen with Paul Coleman, Räsänen with her husband Niilo)
Tribunal upholds speech rights of Canadian campaigner Chris “Billboard Chris” Elston, striking down a government order that censored his X post under the country’s Online Safety Act.
Censored X post referred to controversial WHO “expert” appointee Teddy Cook by her biologically accurate pronouns.
Censorship case, coordinated by ADF International and the Human Rights Law Alliance, raised alarm over expanding global censorship powers and cross-border restrictions on speech.
MELBOURNE (1 July 2025) – The Administrative Review Tribunal has ruled in favor of Canadian campaigner Chris “Billboard Chris” Elston, striking down a government order that sought to censor his post on X under the country’s Online Safety Act.
Elston’s February 2024 post criticized the appointment of controversial WHO “expert” appointee Teddy Cook, and referred to her with biologically accurate pronouns. Elston’s post was deemed “cyber abuse” by Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, which ordered X to remove the content. X initially refused, and later geo-blocked the post in Australia.
Both X and Elston challenged the order, arguing that the censorship was a violation of the fundamental right to free speech. Elston’s legal challenge was coordinated by ADF International, in conjunction with the Human Rights Law Alliance in Australia. The Administrative Review Tribunal in Melbourne held a week-long hearing on the case commencing March 31, 2025.
The Tribunal found that the eSafety Commissioner made the wrong decision in determining Elston’s post was “cyber abuse” and set aside the decision.
“This is a decisive win for free speech and sets an important precedent in the growing global debate over online censorship. In this case, the Australian government alarmingly censored the peaceful expression of a Canadian citizen on an American-owned platform, evidence of the expansive reach of censorial forces, even beyond national borders. Today, free speech has prevailed."
“This is a victory not just for Billboard Chris, but for every Australian—and indeed every citizen who values the fundamental right to free speech,” Coleman continued.
The decision comes amid growing international concern over the Australian government’s expansive censorship powers. In May, the U.S. State Department condemned the eSafety Commissioner’s actions as part of a broader global trend toward coercive state censorship.
“I’m grateful that truth and common sense have prevailed,” said Chris Elston. “This decision sends a clear message that the government does not have authority to silence peaceful expression. My mission is to speak the truth about gender ideology, protecting children across the world from its dangers. With this ruling, the court has upheld my right to voice my convictions—a right that belongs to every one of us. My post should never have been censored in Australia, but my hope is that authorities will now think twice before resorting to censorship”.
More details on Billboard Chris’ censorship case available here.
Belgian police arrest Lois McLatchie Miller and Chris Elston, for peacefully displaying a sign that read: “Children are never born in the wrong body”
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Today, the World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement. The final treaty text drops earlier references to “misinformation” and “infodemic management,” safeguarding free expression.
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Former Mexican congressman and presidential candidate Gabriel Quadri’s fight for free speech continues before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights as ADF International submits a brief on the merits of his case.
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Italian Christian community forced to pay tens of thousands in taxes or make “structural modifications” to their place of worship to satisfy the authorities’ demands that their space look more like “a conventional church”
Represented by ADF International, the church had filed an appeal at the European Court of Human Rights, which has rejected the case
Strasbourg/Rome (March 24, 2025) – In a blow to religious freedom, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled that the case of Breccia di Roma, an Evangelical church in Rome, is inadmissible. The church, represented by ADF International, had appealed to the Court after Italian authorities classified its place of worship as a “shop” due to its non-traditional appearance, which led to a demand for around 50,000€ in taxes and fines.
Despite the church’s argument that the modest architecture of its place of worship does not detract from its use for religious practice and that the Italian Tax Agency’s classification violated its right to worship freely, the ECtHR has decided not to intervene. The decision effectively upholds the Italian Supreme Court of Cassation’s ruling, denying the church the tax exemption granted to other religious buildings in Italy.
“This ruling is disappointing, as it fails to recognize the right of churches to freely determine the manner of their worship. We continue to believe that the government has no right to dictate the appearance of a place of worship."
Court dismissal despite strong legal case
Even though the church went up to the highest domestic court claiming a violation of its religious freedom, the ECtHR denied hearing the case claiming “non-exhaustion of domestic remedies”. The Court provided no explanation as to why it does not consider the church to have “exhausted domestic remedies,” given that Breccia di Roma has no other domestic avenues left to pursue. The court also rejected the church’s claim of having been unjustly discriminated against, despite two lower instance courts in Italy having ruled in Breccia di Roma’s favor on this matter. The decision is final. Breccia di Roma must now pay tens of thousands in taxes or make “structural modifications” to their place of worship to satisfy the authorities’ demands.
In recent years, “inadmissibility” has become the most common outcome of any application pending before the ECtHR. The court received 28,800 new applications in 2024, and 34,650 in 2023. At the same time, the court declared 25,990 pending applications inadmissible in 2024, and 31,329 in 2023.
“It is highly regrettable that Breccia di Roma will not receive justice from the European Court of Human Rights.This religious group was unjustly discriminated against because its chosen place of worship does not look like a conventional church in the eyes of the authorities. The small community is now burdened with thousands of Euros in taxes from which other religious buildings in Italy are exempted."
ADF International remains committed to advocating for the protection of religious freedom and ensuring that churches can operate without unnecessary discrimination based on their appearance or practices.
Breccia di Roma can be supported here.
Case background
The Evangelical Christian community, Breccia di Roma, which uses a former shop as it’s place of worship, obtained authorization to change the building’s intended commercial use – in part, so that the applicable taxation would align with the religious, i.e. non-commercial, nature of their activities.
The Italian Tax Agency, however, claimed that the interior architecture of Breccia di Roma’s worship space was not sufficiently religious in appearance. Therefore, it required the church to pay commercial taxes. Despite winning in the lower courts, the Italian Supreme Court of Cassation sided with the authorities. With no further avenues for justice in Italy, the church turned to the European Court of Human Rights, which has now declined to decide their case.
“We don’t make money —we bring people together closer to Christ. Granted, our building does not match the Great Synagogue, a mosque, or any of the basilicas in Rome. Also, because our resources are limited, we meet in a comparatively unspectacular building. But why would a state punish us for that? Our church is not worse or less spiritual, just because our architecture is different,” De Chirico asserted.
Further details on the case can be found here.
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