Palko protests Swedish verdict on anti-gay pastor


INTERIOR Minister Vladimír Palko met Swedish Ambassador to Slovakia Cecilia Julin to protest a Swedish court's recent decision to imprison a Protestant pastor for his comments about homosexuals, the news wire TASR wrote.

"I object to such a verdict," said Palko, who is a deputy leader of the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), a conservative member of Slovakia's four-party ruling coalition.

"I explained to Ms Julin that my position was like that of Martin Luther when he said: 'Here I stand, I can do no other'," the minister told journalists after the meeting.

Pentecostal Church pastor Ake Green was convicted of inciting hatred against a group of people on the grounds of their sexual orientation.