Eric Dupond-Moretti is France’s combative justice minister.
Paris, France:
French journalist groups have condemned “sexist” comments against female journalists by Eric Dupond-Moretti, the country’s embattled justice minister.
Dupond-Moretti made the offensive comments on Monday after inspecting a courthouse in the central town of Aurillac that was damaged during a protest against the prosecution of a woman for “sexual exhibitionism” after she walked topless in the street.
Many of the protesters bared their chests, as did the arrested woman – identified only as Marina – who told police she took off her top because “it’s super hot outside” and “half the men” on the street did the same done.
The Societe des Journalistes (SDJ) of several national media outlets claimed that Dupond-Moretti told journalists: “I noticed that none of the female journalists who asked questions today stood in front of me with bare breasts. Maybe it wasn’t warm enough?”
The SDJ of broadcaster BFMTV said he made the “inappropriate” comments after a press conference to several reporters, two of whom were women.
The SDJ of France’s largest TV channel, TF1, called the comments “sexist” and “unacceptable,” even “if they were made in jest.”
An official speaking on behalf of Dupond-Moretti, meanwhile, said there was “no basis” for the complaints and that the minister was “fully” committed to “the fight against all forms of sexual and sexist violence.”
The official told AFP that the minister’s comments had been taken out of context and that he simply wanted to point out that women wearing tops, like the reporters present, were “proof that respect for the law is the norm”.
The leader of the opposition Socialists, Olivier Faure, backed the media outrage, calling Dupond-Moretti’s words “inappropriate comments from an inappropriate minister”. The minister “must manage his libido elsewhere than in government,” Faure said.
Dupond-Moretti has a history of robust exchanges. In March, he was scolded by Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne for repeatedly using an offensive hand gesture known as the “bras d’honneur” (“arm of honour”) towards an opposition lawmaker in parliament.
And finally, the former star lawyer was ordered to stand trial for allegedly abusing his ministerial position to settle scores with opponents from his legal career.
In 2021, he admitted to failing to declare 300,000 euros ($325,000) in royalties to tax authorities.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published through a syndicated feed.)
