The protection of Catalonia by the European Court of Human Rights

This paper examines the evolving role of the European Court of Human Rights in protecting freedom of expression for minorities, using the ongoing tensions in Catalonia as a focal point. It analyses from a global perspective how the Court's understanding of freedom of expression is strongly protected yet limited when applied to national contexts. Recent developments, particularly post-2019, highlight Spain’s selective application of hate speech laws against pro-independence Catalan voices, with a focus on the ongoing crackdown on political dissent. In 2018, the Court’s ruling in the case Stern Taulats and Roura Capellera v. Spain declared Catalan activists' burning of images of the Spanish monarchs provocative, yet upheld the principle of political dissent. The decision overlooked Spain's selective application of hate speech laws to disproportionately censor pro-independence Catalan voices, even condoning overt hatred from nationalist quarters.

The paper argues that the Court's failure to explicitly uphold speech restrictions through the lens of minority rights protections’ perpetuates a problematic separation between the exercise of free expression and collective claims to self-determination. This analysis also underscores the importance of considering ongoing geopolitical shifts within Spain and Europe, as well as the Court's transnational role in addressing the systemic use of hate speech laws as a tool of ethno-nationalist repression.