Ten US-based university professors jointly sent a letter to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) demanding sanctions against Finland's Prosecutor General Raija Toiviainen.
According to the letter's signatories, Toiviainen committed "serious human rights abuses" by filing charges in April against MP Päivi Räsänen (CD) in relation to three counts of incitement against a minority group.
The letter also criticised Toiviainen for filing separate charges against Bishop-elect of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese Juhana Pohjola for publishing Räsänen's booklet.
The letter was published by RealClearPolitics, a conservative political news website based in the United States.
In the letter, the professors claim that the prosecutor's case will force "Finns of every rank and station" to choose between state harassment and expressing the teachings of their own religion.
They also call for travel sanctions against Toiviainen and her family members, as well as economic sanctions for the prosecutor and any line prosecutors that choose to assist her with the case.
Prosecutor: Räsänen's comments overstep free speech boundary
One of the three incitement charges concern writings by Räsänen published on the Luther Foundation Finland website, a conservative reform movement, and the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland website.
The other two charges relate to Räsänen's publications and statements on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and on the Yle Puheradio channel.
According to the Prosecutor General, the statements were derogatory and discriminatory towards homosexuals and violated their equality and dignity. Thus, they overstepped the boundaries of freedom of speech and religion and would likely fuel intolerance, contempt and hatred.
The letter refers specifically to the article published by the Luther Foundation Finland, in which "Räsänen argues that homosexual activity should be recognized by the church as sinful based on the teachings of the Hebrew Bible and Christian scripture."
Räsänen said at the time that she was shocked the files were charged, and added it was a question of whether a belief based on the traditional teachings of the Bible and the Christian churches can be expressed in Finland.
EDIT 4.6.2021: An earlier version of this story incorrectly named the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland, and suggested that it operated under the auspices of the state-supported Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. That is not the case.
EDIT 30.7.2021: An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to Yle Puhe as a radio programme. It is Yle's talk radio channel.