Draft:Group insult

Group insult (Groepsbelediging) also called insult to a group of people or insult to a population group is a crime in Dutch criminal law. It is included in Article 137c of Title V of the Dutch Criminal Code, which includes crimes against public order.

Insulting a group of people is a form of punishable insult and is considered a form of expression offence The crime is distinguished from other offenses of insult, not by the content of the insult, but by the link between the expression and specific group characteristics. There is insult to a group of people if someone makes deliberately insulting statements about a group of people in public, orally or in writing or images, because of their race, their religion or belief, their heterosexual or homosexual orientation or their physical, psychological or intellectual disability. The rationale for criminalization is partly to prevent disruption of the public debate and the prevention of disturbances.

Insulting a group is closely related to the incitement to hatred, discrimination or violence contained in Article 137d. Article 137e of the Criminal Code contains the offense of disseminating group insults.