French Police Treatment of Journalist Vittorio de Filippis Sparks Outcry Worldwide

I have never practiced journalism in the true sense of the word, but I do have a degree in Journalism and I must, in the spirit of respect for the profession, share my thoughts on the recent strip search of a French journalist Vittorio de Filippis at the hands of the police. What the French police did to that man was a disgrace and a travesty. According to media reports,

The knocks on his door came at 6:40 a.m., recalled, when Paris was still dark and he was fast asleep. Three police officers -- a pair of men and a woman, all wearing armbands -- had come to take him in. By the time his ordeal ended five hours later, about 11:30 a.m. Friday, the journalist wrote, he had been manhandled, handcuffed, humiliated in front of his sons, twice forced to strip and submit to body cavity searches and interrogated without lawyers by an investigating magistrate -- all over a two-year-old libel case.

The treatment of Filippis, an executive and former editor-in-chief of the Paris newspaper Liberation, prompted an outcry Saturday from his colleagues, lawyers and other supporters, who said the tactics were out of place in a country with long and cherished traditions of rule of law and freedom of expression. The newspaper, considered by many as a reliably left-wing daily, got its start during the youth uprising of 1968. It seems that the police, who have wide latitude in handling suspects under French law, were a natural target for opponents of President Nicolas Sarkozy's law-and-order approach to government.

"In 30 years, this is the first time I have heard of or seen such a thing," said Jean-Paul Levy, one of the newspaper's attorneys. "I am scandalized that this kind of treatment would be inflicted on him over an offense that is only punishable by a fine and not by prison."

According to the Washington Post, Reporters Without Borders, a media advocacy group, condemned what it called "coercive methods" and said they were a sign of "deterioration in press freedom in France." In a statement, the group said: "We are outraged by the unacceptable methods used against Vittorio de Filippis and their humiliating nature. Such a thing has never before been heard of in France. To treat a journalist like a criminal and resort to practices such as body searches is not only shocking but unworthy of French justice."

The investigating magistrate, Muriel Josie, refused requests from French journalists for an explanation of what happened. The police issued no formal comment. But Agence France-Presse, the country's main news agency, quoted anonymous police officials as saying that Filippis was hauled in because he had not responded to mailed summons and received rough treatment because he talked back to the "irreproachable" officers who had come to his door.

Filippis, in a detailed account published Saturday by Liberation, said Josie questioned him about a lawsuit brought against the newspaper last year. The suit concerned an opinion article contributed by an Internet commentator and published by Liberation's Web site that described past legal troubles of Xavier Niel, founder of a French Internet access company called Free.

What happened to this man is a disgrace and should not be tolerated anywhere. We have had situations in the United States where the cops have used excessive force against private citizens and some have been punished, others have walked away with a slap on the wrist. This should not be tolerated under any circumstance. The problem, however, is the fact that the leaders of the country tolerate such behavior.

To read more, CLICK HERE....