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When Scerri asked her whether her own late sister, who had Down Syndrome, was the fruit of sin, Brincat responded once again that this sin originated from Adam.

This is basically the Christian concept of original sin, the Christian theory popularised by St Augustine, that humans are born with a taint because Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.

I have serious issues with this theory, and I think believing that you were born a bad person because of something your predecessor had done can be extremely damaging to your own sense of self-worth.

However, it is nothing more than an expression of a religious belief and not hate speech against people with disabilities.

The complainants might claim to be representing a victimised section of society but by ganging up on Brincat and trying to drag her through a lengthy legal process that could well end with her getting slapped with a €10,000 fine, they are actually victimising the singer.

Just because you disagree with something someone says doesn’t mean you think that person’s words should be criminalised, and it’s honestly sad that this needs to be said.

I don’t know exactly when our society started shifting from a culture of debate to the dominance of this authoritarian logic, with the police getting dragged in whenever someone feels offended, but it needs to end.

Malta’s speech laws have been reduced to an absolute farce and, at this stage, they should probably be scrapped altogether and replaced with a clear proviso that no speech should be considered illegal unless it constitutes a threat.

Otherwise, the only threat would be against every citizen’s right to speak their mind freely.

Do you think Phyllisienne Brincat should be charged with hate speech?