Iceland's parliament has abolished its blasphemy laws, despite opposition from some of the country's churches. A bill was put forward by the minority Pirate Party, which campaigns for internet and data freedom. It came after the deadly attack against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris. The bill said it was ‘essential in a free society that the public can express themselves without fear of punishment’. Three Pirate Party MPs moved a bill before Alþingi (Iceland’s parliament) to have a clause removed from the Icelandic Penal Code, in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris. On 7 July the three MPs took to the Alþingi lectern and one after another, while the vote was under way, declared, ‘I am Charlie Hebdo.’ The established (Lutheran) Church of Iceland supported the move, but the Church of Iceland parish of Berunes (Eastern Iceland), the Catholic Church of Iceland, and the Fíladelfía Pentecostal church opposed it. The Catholic Church argued that blasphemy can inflict psychological abuse on individuals or groups. The Fíladelfía church asked, ‘Does a person’s human rights include the right to mock the beliefs of others?’