Tweet
Reporters without borders (press release), France
Feb 1 2007
France - Annual report 2007
Area: 551,500 sq.km.
Population: 60,496,000.
Language: French.
Head of state: Jacques Chirac.
Respect for religious beliefs and private life and for the right not
to reveal journalistic sources were at the centre of the press
freedom debate during 2006.
The managing editor of the daily France Soir, Jacques Lefranc, was
dismissed by the paper's French-Egyptian owner, Raymond Lakah, for
reprinting 12 cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed on 1 February that
were first published by a Danish newspaper. Five days later, on 6
February, a bomb threat was made to the paper.
The day before, a fire extinguisher had been placed outside the
offices of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, hinting at an imminent
attack. A legal effort by Muslim organisations, including the French
Muslim Council (CFCM), to obtain seizure of the issue of the weekly
devoted entirely to the cartoons, failed on 7 February. The CFCM
began legal action on 10 February against French papers that had
reprinted the cartoons. An article in the daily Le Figaro by
philosophy teacher Robert Redeker headed `What should the free world
do about Islamist intimidation?' got the issue of the paper banned in
Egypt and Tunisia. Redeker was given police protection after getting
death threats and had to stop his teaching activities.
So-called `revisionist' laws also substituted ideology for debate, as
shown by the National Assembly's passage of a Socialist proposal
banning denial of the 1915 Armenian massacres on pain of five years
in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros, thus helping to build an
official version of history and shutting down debate, which is
against the principle of freedom of expression.
As in the previous year, 2006 saw numerous prosecutions of
journalists in a bid to make them reveal their sources. Justice
minister Pascal Clément promised however to include privacy of
sources in the revised 1881 press law. This did not stop the formal
investigation of six journalists for `possessing legally confidential
material' (two journalists of L'Equipe), `violating professional
secrecy' (Midi Libre) and `violating confidentiality' (in the
Clearstream corruption scandal). A Paris court's dismissal of charges
against journalist Claude Ardid on 14 November was a welcome
contrast. The court said a journalist's only job was to help inform
the public, including in ongoing legal cases, and could not be
interfered with except where freedom of expression was abused but not
because of violations of secrecy that have helped to inform the
public.'
The aim of restricting journalists is also behind the protection of
the private life of public figures. The dismissal of Alain Genestar
as editor of Paris-Match in June 2006 aroused strong protests. He
said he had been removed because he printed a cover photo on 25
August 2005 of conservative leader Nicolas Sarkozy's wife Cécilia in
New York with her boyfriend. The magazine's owners, Lagardère, a
friend of Nicolas Sarkozy, claimed he had been dismissed because of a
`professional' dispute.
The situation remained worrying in New Caledonia, where the media was
frequently accused in local conflicts. Things at the broadcaster RFO
returned to normal in November after eight months of intermittent
disputes. But the printing press of the weekly paper Les Infos was
shut down in late August and early September, and that of the daily
Les Nouvelles calédoniennes briefly in November. Journalists were
frequently barred from press conferences or prevented from filming.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Feb 1 2007
France - Annual report 2007
Area: 551,500 sq.km.
Population: 60,496,000.
Language: French.
Head of state: Jacques Chirac.
Respect for religious beliefs and private life and for the right not
to reveal journalistic sources were at the centre of the press
freedom debate during 2006.
The managing editor of the daily France Soir, Jacques Lefranc, was
dismissed by the paper's French-Egyptian owner, Raymond Lakah, for
reprinting 12 cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed on 1 February that
were first published by a Danish newspaper. Five days later, on 6
February, a bomb threat was made to the paper.
The day before, a fire extinguisher had been placed outside the
offices of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, hinting at an imminent
attack. A legal effort by Muslim organisations, including the French
Muslim Council (CFCM), to obtain seizure of the issue of the weekly
devoted entirely to the cartoons, failed on 7 February. The CFCM
began legal action on 10 February against French papers that had
reprinted the cartoons. An article in the daily Le Figaro by
philosophy teacher Robert Redeker headed `What should the free world
do about Islamist intimidation?' got the issue of the paper banned in
Egypt and Tunisia. Redeker was given police protection after getting
death threats and had to stop his teaching activities.
So-called `revisionist' laws also substituted ideology for debate, as
shown by the National Assembly's passage of a Socialist proposal
banning denial of the 1915 Armenian massacres on pain of five years
in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros, thus helping to build an
official version of history and shutting down debate, which is
against the principle of freedom of expression.
As in the previous year, 2006 saw numerous prosecutions of
journalists in a bid to make them reveal their sources. Justice
minister Pascal Clément promised however to include privacy of
sources in the revised 1881 press law. This did not stop the formal
investigation of six journalists for `possessing legally confidential
material' (two journalists of L'Equipe), `violating professional
secrecy' (Midi Libre) and `violating confidentiality' (in the
Clearstream corruption scandal). A Paris court's dismissal of charges
against journalist Claude Ardid on 14 November was a welcome
contrast. The court said a journalist's only job was to help inform
the public, including in ongoing legal cases, and could not be
interfered with except where freedom of expression was abused but not
because of violations of secrecy that have helped to inform the
public.'
The aim of restricting journalists is also behind the protection of
the private life of public figures. The dismissal of Alain Genestar
as editor of Paris-Match in June 2006 aroused strong protests. He
said he had been removed because he printed a cover photo on 25
August 2005 of conservative leader Nicolas Sarkozy's wife Cécilia in
New York with her boyfriend. The magazine's owners, Lagardère, a
friend of Nicolas Sarkozy, claimed he had been dismissed because of a
`professional' dispute.
The situation remained worrying in New Caledonia, where the media was
frequently accused in local conflicts. Things at the broadcaster RFO
returned to normal in November after eight months of intermittent
disputes. But the printing press of the weekly paper Les Infos was
shut down in late August and early September, and that of the daily
Les Nouvelles calédoniennes briefly in November. Journalists were
frequently barred from press conferences or prevented from filming.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress