OTEGI MONDRAGON v. SPAIN JUDGMENT 9 Article 490 “... 3. Anyone who falsely accuses or insults the King or any of his ascendants or descendants, the Queen consort or the consort of the Queen, the Regent or any member of the Regency, or the Crown Prince, in the exercise of his or her duties or on account of or in connection with them, shall be liable to a term of imprisonment of between six months and two years if the false accusation or insult is of a serious nature, and otherwise to a day-fine payable for between six and twelve months.” This provision is contained in Title XXI of Book II of the Criminal Code (“Offences against the Constitution”), under Chapter II (“Offences against the Crown”). 29. Articles 496 and 504 of the Criminal Code deal with the offence of serious insult against Parliament, the government or other State institutions. These provisions feature in Title XXI of Book II of the Criminal Code (“Offences against the Constitution”), under Chapter III (“Offences against State institutions and the separation of powers”). Article 496 “Anyone who seriously insults the Cortes Generales [Congress of Deputies and Senate] or the legislative assembly of an Autonomous Community ... shall be liable to a day-fine payable for between twelve and eighteen months ...” Article 504 “Anyone who seriously threatens, falsely accuses or insults the nation’s government, the General Council of the Judiciary, the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, or the Governing Council or High Court of Justice of an Autonomous Community shall be liable to a day-fine payable for between twelve and eighteen months ...” B. Council of Europe texts 30. Reference should first be made to the Declaration on freedom of political debate in the media adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 12 February 2004, which provides: “The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, ... Conscious that some domestic legal systems still grant legal privileges to political figures or public officials against the dissemination of information and opinions about them in the media, which is not compatible with the right to freedom of expression and information as guaranteed by Article 10 of the Convention; ...