The freedom to inform wins as court lifts gagging order on Mediapart
After twelve days of unprecedented censorship, a court in Paris has overturned the gagging order that had banned Mediapart from publishing an investigation into the political practices of Gaël Perdriau, mayor of Saint-Étienne. The injunction was granted on November 18th following an ex parte application by the mayor's lawyer. As it was an ex parte application – meaning that only the applicant's side was present - Mediapart was not informed of it and was thus not present to defend its case. That injunction was widely condemned, with the broad-left political coalition NUPES describing it as “incomprehensible”. Now, on Wednesday November 30th, the same judge who made the first ruling has overturned her own verdict, stating that she had been misinformed by Perdriau's lawyer at the initial application. Fabrice Arfi reports on this victory for the freedom of the press.
OnOn Wednesday November 30th a court in Paris finally put an end to twelve days of unprecedented censorship against Mediapart, which received a gagging order preventing publication of a new investigation into the questionable political practices of Gaël Perdriau, the mayor of Saint-Étienne in south-east France.
