France

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of Defence Alain Richard, RSF protested the restrictions imposed by the Ministry of Defence since 8 October 2001 on the Spot Image company concerning the distribution of satellite images of Afghanistan and its neighbouring countries to the press. “Just as in the United States, the Ministry of Defence […]

(RSF/IFEX) – On 15 October 2001, RSF activists went to the Socialist Party (Parti socialiste, PS) headquarters on Solférino Street in Paris, just as Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré was arriving to meet the party’s first secretary, François Hollande. RSF was hoping to draw the attention of the first secretary, and French officials who were […]

(RSF/IFEX) – The following is an RSF press release: BLAISE COMPAORÉ’S VISIT TO FRANCE French courts refuse to hear complaint against Burkina Faso president Reporters sans frontières attempts to bring forward an independent action for damages Reporters sans frontières (RSF) has taken note of the French state prosecutor’s decision to shelf the organisation’s complaint against […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has asked the French state prosecutor to open a preliminary investigation against Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré, on the occasion of his visit to France. The president is expected to arrive in France on 11 October 2001. Represented by lawyer Sophie Coupry, RSF wants the French courts to examine Compaoré’s responsibility for […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In an 8 October 2001 letter to Jean-Michel Hubert, president of the Telecommunications Regulation Authority (Autorité de régulation des télécommunications, ART), Michel Gentot, president of the National Commission on Computer Science and Liberties (Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés, CNIL), Alain Bacquet, president of the National Human Rights Consultative Commission (Commission nationale […]

(RSF/IFEX) – Jean-Pierre Rey, a photo-journalist from the Gamma agency who was detained by the National Anti-terrorist Division (Division nationale antiterroriste, DNAT) and held for questioning in Paris on 3 September 2001, is the fifth journalist to face such a measure from the French justice system in the past twenty months. RSF is concerned by […]

(RSF/IFEX) – Since 29 September 2000, RSF has recorded thirty journalists shot (some were shot several times) in the Occupied Territories. With one exception, there is little doubt that the gunshots were fired from Israeli positions. In addition, on the occasion of Ariel Sharon’s visit to France on 5 and 6 July 2001, RSF has […]

(RSF/IFEX) – On 27 June 2001, a dozen representatives from international media were barred from entering Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s press conference at the Marigny Hotel in Paris. “The filtering at the entrance to this press conference is symptomatic of the methods employed by the Syrian authorities against the foreign press. It is also a […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to the first president of the Court of Appeal, Guy Canivet, RSF expressed concern over the 19 June 2001 decision by the Criminal Chamber of Court of Appeal to reject the appeal of journalists Jean-Marie Pontaut and Jérôme Dupuis. The two journalists are authors of the book “The Ears of […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Chief of Police Jean-Paul Proust, RSF expressed concern over the burglary of the “Dossiers du Canard enchaîné” office in Paris on 3 June 2001. “The journalist, whose computer was stolen, was investigating military affairs. This robbery deserves a thorough enquiry,” stated RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard. “We ask that you […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is astonished that the investigation of photographer Jacques Langevin, from the Corbis Sygma agency, is being reopened in the inquest into Lady Diana’s death. The organisation demands that charges against Langevin be definitively dropped. “Having failed to convict this press professional for manslaughter, the French judicial system is using an implausible pretext […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is protesting the 18 October 2000 interrogation of journalist Arnaud Hamelin for “receiving information protected by professional secrecy”. “The journalist is being blamed for having used the information as he saw fit. Yet, this is clearly his right, and it must be respected,” stated Robert Ménard, the organisation’s secretary-general. “Which obligation to […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is concerned about journalist Arnaud Hamelin’s placement in police custody, which sharply evokes the difficulties faced by journalists in protecting their sources. “We are concerned about the future repercussions of this decision. A journalist cannot be ordered to reveal the sources of his information, and as such be forced to act as […]

(RSF/IFEX) – The following is a 30 May 2000 RSF press release: Reporters sans frontières welcomes the abolishment of prison sentences for press law violations The Parliament has finally abolished prison sentences for press law violations from French legislation. In their final reading of the bill on protection of the presumption of innocence, the National […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Jean Pierre Chevènement, RSF expressed its concern over the police surveillance of a journalist with the newspaper “l’Est républicain” during his investigations in Corsica. “Rather than assuring journalists’ security, these police practices put pressure on the independence of information and constitute a threat to investigative […]

**For background information on Fleutiaux’s case, see IFEX alerts of 10 February 2000 and 2 December 1999** (RSF/IFEX) – The following is an RSF press release: 2 March 2000 Exhibition of photographs by Brice Fleutiaux, held hostage in Chechnya since October 1999 Brice Fleutiaux, an independent French photographer, has been detained in Chechnya since October […]