Racial hatred fine for ‘monkey’ slur

THE DIRECTOR of a newspaper that compared Justice Minister Christiane Taubira to a monkey has been fined €10,000 for incitement to racial hatred.

Jean-Marie Molitor was handed the fine for a front page from autumn 2013 which showed the minister’s photo with the headline: Maligne comme un singe, Taubira retrouve la banane (literally “cunning as a monkey, Taubira has got her banana back” – slang for a smile).

Molitor admitted the front page was “in poor taste” but denied there was any racist intent.

It is not the first time far-right newspaper Minute has been in trouble – in May this year it was fined for a homophobic front page on gay marriage.

In the case of the Taubira cover, prosecutors had asked for a suspended jail sentence as well as a fine, which was however rejected.

However courts took tougher action in another recent case, jailing for nine months a former mayoral candidate for the Front National who insulted Mrs Taubira on her Facebook page.
An appeal hearing in the case is slated for January next year.

Photo: Guillaume Paumier/ Wikimedia Commons