Strasbourg – The Arch-Conservative Priest and Holocaust denier Richard Williamson has failed the European Court of Human Rights with a complaint against Germany. The Strasbourg judgments rejected the UK complaint on Thursday as unfounded.

The ex-member of the controversial Pius Brotherhood had been fined in Germany because of the interview statements on the Holocaust to fines. Williamson had denied in a recorded conversation with a Swedish television journalist the existence of gas chambers for the extermination of the Jews during national socialism. The interview was recorded at the seminar in Zaitzkofen, Bavaria

The priest saw that his opinion was contrary to his right to freedom of expression. He argued in court that his statements were intended for the Swedish public, where the denial of the Holocaust was not punishable. The judges held out that Williamson could very well expect his statements to meet in Germany for interest – alone in view of the country’s history. Williamson had not made any meetings with the TV station to prevent broadcasts in Germany. The German courts had rightly ruled that Williamson’s statements were punishable in Germany – especially since the priest met on German ground.