Companies also have a right to honour
Companies also have a right to honour
"I've just set up a humanitarian association with a few good friends. In search of funds, we sent a large number of sponsorship applications to major companies in Switzerland. One of them categorically refused to make any contribution to our project. What are the criminal risks if I disclose how I was received?
J, Versoix
By disclosing the names of companies that refuse to contribute to your project, you run the risk of offending their honour. There are three offences against honour, set out in articles 173 to 178 of the Criminal Code. They are defamation, slander and insult. Despite their similarity, these three offences have some fundamental differences. While all three punish an attack on honour, the circumstances in which it is committed are not the same. The dishonourable remarks must be communicated to a third party, and there must be an intention to cause harm, for an act to be classified as defamation. Slander differs from defamation in that the perpetrator also knows that the allegations are false. With regard to insult, this offence is committed by anyone who, by word, writing, image, gesture or deed, attacks another person's honour. Neither communication to a third party nor the falsity of the allegations are required. As this offence is much more general in nature, it covers a wider range of behaviour. It is relatively easy to fall foul of insult. Fortunately, it can only be prosecuted on complaint.
In this case, however, the issue is more one of defamation. Your intention is clearly to communicate real facts to third parties.
It should be noted that legal entities enjoy the same right to honour as natural persons, with a few exceptions such as public bodies and authorities. The infringement must be directed at the company as such, and not just at the people who work there. It must also relate to the company's social activity or, in other words, its "conduct". A simple value judgement cannot constitute defamation. For proposals to damage a company's honour, it must appear contemptible in the eyes of any uninformed person who learns of its behaviour. Account must be taken not only of the expression itself, but also of the context in which it is used.
So it all depends on the exact wording of your comments, their content and the conclusion an uninformed reader might draw from them.
