Being
rude to the French president is no longer an offence after parliament
agreed on Thursday to amend legislation dating back to 1881 in favor of
freedom of speech.
Whereas
before any rude remark risked an automatic fine for “offending the head
of state,” the president is now reduced to the same category as
ministers and parliamentarians and would need to have a judge prove
there had been slander or defamation.
The
change came after the European Court of Human Rights ruled in March
that France violated a demonstrator’s right to freedom of expression
when it fined him for holding a banner up to former President Nicolas
Sarkozy reading: “Get lost, jerk.”
That
slogan has been infamous in France since Sarkozy used the same words in
2008 to insult a man in a crowd who refused to shake his hand, and the
court judged that left-wing activist Herve Eon was being satirical with
his protest banner.
It
said his conviction and 30-euro ($40) fine were out of proportion to
his protest and that his right to freedom of expression had been
violated.
Anyone found by a judge to have slandered the president still runs the risk of a fine of up to 45,000 euros.
President
Francois Hollande has so far shown a thick skin, however, as critics
have given him a string of unkind nicknames like “Flanby”, a brand of
wobbly caramel pudding or “Mr. Little Jokes”.
