The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Elisabeth Guigou: "#MeToo is very good, but denunciation on social networks on condition of anonymity is dangerous"

2021-06-01T12:31:47.350Z


EXCLUSIVE. How to preserve the principle of the presumption of innocence in the age of social networks and the liberation of the word of victims


The Minister of Justice, Éric Dupond-Moretti, sets up the working group on the presumption of innocence on Monday. Placed under the voluntary presidency of Elisabeth Guigou, herself Keeper of the Seals in the Jospin government from 1997 to 2000, it will be made up of thirteen other participants: four magistrates, two lawyers, two judicial police officers, one academic and four journalists. including the son of politician Dominique Baudis, victim of slanderous accusations in the Patrice Alègre affair at the beginning of the 2000s. Objective of this group, according to the terms of the engagement letter, "to draw up a report of the breaches of the presumption of innocence in our contemporary society ”and make“ any useful proposal, legislative or practical, making it possible to guarantee respect for the presumption of innocence ”.The final report is expected in October. Exclusive interview.

Let's start with a real-life example if you don't mind.

In the case of Olivier Duhamel, targeted earlier this year by accusations of rape through the book of his daughter-in-law Camille Kouchner, do you consider that the presumption of innocence has been violated?

ELISABETH GUIGOU.

Since my time at the head of the Ministry of Justice, I refrain from commenting on an ongoing case.

Moreover, our working group will keep away from the files under examination.

I would add that I did not know anything about this whole affair until the publication of Camille Kouchner's book.

Do you regret your resignation in mid-January from the commission on incest and sexual violence against children?

Not at all.

I considered, on my own, that I could not do this work with the necessary serenity given the legitimate emotion raised by Camille Kouchner's revelations and the very exaggerated comments that followed on my supposed proximity to Olivier Duhamel, whom I had not visited for almost 15 years.

Read alsoClose to Duhamel and at the head of a commission on incest ... the discomfort Elisabeth Guigou

How do you respond to those who will see your present designation as a form of consolation prize following the January episode?

(

Amused

) To think or say such a thing would be a joke.

Moreover, long before I chaired the commission on sexual violence, Eric Dupond-Moretti had already spoken to me about his idea of ​​taking stock of the law of 2000 on the presumption of innocence and the rights of victims, that I had worn at the time.

This law reaffirmed the presumption of innocence as the cardinal principle of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

For more than twenty years, I have had the opportunity to question myself on the respect of this principle on numerous occasions.

So the Keeper of the Seals proposal immediately interested me.

By whom and why do you think this principle is being abused?

It cuts across all strata of society, starting with policies that sometimes use terms like “presumed guilty”.

Actors in the legal world sometimes leak information into the public arena.

And then there are the social networks that operate in the immediacy, the refusal of nuance, complexity and objective truth.

Then, the difficulty lies in the fact that the principle of the presumption of innocence must deal with other principles which are just as important.

I am thinking of freedom of expression and the rights of victims.

How is it possible to enforce the principle of the presumption of innocence on social networks?

Our working group will not focus on media or social networks.

Some provide the necessary investigative work… when it is well done.

The others form a sounding board for our time.

Social networks have thus rendered great service in the field of violence against women and sexual violence in general, which was denied by society.

The #MeToo movement is great.

But denunciation on social networks on condition of anonymity is dangerous.

What distinction do you make between the two?

In one case, we alert, we say: “I too was a victim.

In the other, we give names that we designate as guilty.

However, I am always worried about the phenomena of rumors.

Be careful.

It is not by organizing reprisals that we will advance justice and the law.

To read also # MeToo in bookstores: "There is a joy to see the word free", rejoices Lola Lafon

How do you observe the gulf that seems to have widened between the Ministries of the Interior and of Justice, against the backdrop of criticism from the police against the judiciary?

I'm very worried.

Some politicians have indulged in incredible verbal slippages in recent days that threaten the very principle of the separation of powers.

These two great public services, the justice and the police, must cooperate and respect each other.

I understand the deep emotion of the police, victims of violence and assassinations.

It is abominable.

But this should not lead to questioning the foundations of our rule of law.

What is your view on the action of Eric Dupond-Moretti at the head of the Ministry of Justice?

For justice to be respected in the state, a strong personality is needed at the head of this ministry.

Eric Dupond-Moretti is certainly one with his temperament.

He got a very good budget, which is never easy.

Moreover, his bill for confidence in justice is very consistent.

I particularly appreciate the attention paid to everyday justice.

When the Ministry of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, declares that the problem of the police is the weakness of the means of justice ...

(

She cuts

) It is true that the weakness of the means of justice is a problem.

Even when the Minister of Justice gets a good budget on time, that is not enough to catch up.

In France, we have nearly three times fewer magistrates than in Germany, for example.

It is not surprising in these conditions that justice is perceived as too slow.

But the same can be said about police services.

They too suffer from a lack of resources.

Some police station premises are unworthy, I saw it with my own eyes when I was a deputy in Seine-Saint-Denis.

And when we say that French justice is too lax ...

Some investigations are sometimes poorly conducted, it can happen. But justice, by definition, respects the law. So if the law has to be changed, it is up to parliamentarians. In the Halimi case, which was judged, the Court of Cassation applied the law as it stood. Even if this raises serious questions that I would be careful not to decide.

Source: leparis

All tech articles on 2021-06-01

You may like

News/Politics 2024-03-27T07:56:25.580Z

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.