Defamation is not a crime in these countries
In Britain, in the year 2009 itself, such a system was made that criminal cases cannot be run in cases related to defamation. At that time, it was believed that the rest of the countries were curtailing the freedom of speech in Britain by making an excuse for defamation being criminal. On the other hand, defamation cases are not criminal in Australia and New Zealand. Criminal defamation was abolished in New Zealand only in 1993. Here defamation cases are settled in the courts but without involving the police. There is no jail even if the blame of defamation is proved. The victim has to pay the damages caused by the defamation and the cost of the proceedings in the court. In New Zealand, such cases are criminally prosecuted only if someone intentionally releases false information to influence voters or cause severe emotional distress online.
criminal or civil offenses in the United States
Defamation is not criminal at the federal level in the US, but it is in 24 states. The Supreme Court of America says that if the complainant is a well-known person, then action under such criminal defamation law should be taken only when the matter of malice is actually proved. Not only this, the Supreme Court has also banned criminal cases for speaking the truth. Experts say that although criminal defamation is part of the criminal code in many states, they are never enforced.
What does European law say on defamation?
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe said in 2017 that three quarters of member states have criminal provisions on defamation. In nine countries of Western Europe, there is a provision to impose strict restrictions on defamation of a well-known person.
Strict law on defamation in Japan
There are both civil and criminal cases for defamation in Japan. Not only this, in the year 2022, the punishment in the criminal defamation case was made more stringent after a famous wrestler committed suicide due to online bullying. In this country, those found guilty of criminal defamation can be sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment and pay a fine of 300,000 yen. Before the year 2022, the guilty were kept in custody for some time and the compensation was also less than ten thousand yen. Therefore, cases of criminal defamation are filed here more than cases of civil defamation.
Criminal case runs in Pakistan and Bangladesh
In the case of defamation in Pakistan both civil and criminal cases go on while in Bangladesh only criminal cases go on. In both countries, there is a provision of imprisonment of up to two years and fine on conviction. Recently a bill has been brought in Pakistan which says that if the army or judiciary is mocked by any means, then they will be jailed for five years. In Bangladesh’s IT law, online defamation can be punished with imprisonment of up to seven years, which can also be extended up to 14 years.