The media “Reporterre” denounces a new obstacle to freedom of information

On December 7, Grégoire Souchay will go to the Rodez court to repeat what he said to the gendarmes who interviewed him on February 24: if he was, on November 10, 2021, in the premises of the seed company RAGT in Calmont , in Aveyron, it is because he covered the action of the voluntary Faucheurs for Reporterre. As a journalist, he was there to document and photograph activists putting “unusable seeds of varieties made tolerant to pesticides”as evidenced by his article and photos posted on November 12, 2021 on the environmental and societal information site.

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These explanations did not prevent the gendarmerie from reproaching this journalist with ten years of seniority, holder of a press card, freelancer for Reporterre and Releasehaving “fraudulently withheld bags containing rapeseed seeds” and “voluntarily damaged or damaged several bags of seed”, thus likening him to an activist. “There is no reason to sue me, except to harm a media”protests Mr. Souchay.

The journalist recalls that “the time and money lost in this procedure” are incompatible with “journalistic work” for which readers give their donations to Reporterre. “In a way, we can speak of a gag procedure”abounds Hervé Kempf, the editor-in-chief of the site. “It’s bullying”adds M.e Alexandre Faro, who must already defend the independent media in two other cases.

“It would set a precedent”

In June 2020, in fact, a journalist had spent ten hours in police custody and was fined 750 euros for having followed demonstrators on the runway of Paris-Orly airport. A hierarchical appeal to the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, had remained a dead letter. In October of the same year, two reporters were fined 450 euros during an action by environmentalists at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport.

Other journalists present (France 3, MediapartAFP…, depending on the situation) were not worried, notes the lawyer, who is annoyed by these “Obstacles to freedom of information”, aiming at a “small media”, before three different courts (police, criminal and correctional). “It is the very culture of freedom to inform that is threatened”believes Hervé Kempf.

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In fact, he cites, in addition to these procedures, the two recent court decisions preventing Mediapart to publish an investigation on the mayor of Saint-Etienne, and Reflets.info new articles on Altice, based on hacked data (appeal decisions are expected on Wednesday, November 30). If condemnation there should be, “under no circumstances would we accept, because it would create a precedent, and there is no question of it”, adds Hervé Kempf. An information and support meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 5, at the Paris Labor Exchange.

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