(Paris) Le président Emmanuel Macron a affirmé mercredi que la Légion d’honneur est un Ordre qui n’est « pas là pour faire la morale », tout en dénonçant « une chasse à l’homme » contre l’acteur Gérard Depardieu, à la suite de la diffusion d’un documentaire télé choc sur la star française du cinéma.
« Il y a une chose dans laquelle vous ne me verrez jamais, ce sont les chasses à l’homme. Je déteste ça », a répondu le chef de l’État sur la chaîne de télévision France 5.
La ministre de la Culture Rima Abdul Malak avait annoncé sur la même chaîne vendredi qu’une « procédure disciplinaire » serait engagée par la Grande Chancellerie de la Légion d’honneur à l’encontre de l’acteur, visé par deux plaintes en France pour viol et agression sexuelle, et mis en examen dans l’un des deux cas. L’acteur réfute ces accusations.
Le président de la République s’est dit « grand admirateur de Gérard Depardieu […] a huge actor.” “He made France, our great authors, our great characters known throughout the world […] he makes France proud,” continued Emmanuel Macron, contradicting the Minister of Culture.
In the same show, C to youRima Abdul Malak estimated Friday that the actor’s comments reported in the report Further investigation “shame France”.
In these images, broadcast on France 2 at the beginning of December, the giant of French cinema, known for having interpreted Commissioner Maigret as Cyrano, multiplies the misogynistic and insulting remarks by addressing women, not sparing a little girl with his remarks obscene.
Emmanuel Macron judged on Wednesday that Rima Abdul Malak had “advanced” by speaking about a procedure which could remove the actor’s distinction.
“There are sometimes outbursts over comments made. I am wary of the context,” he insisted. And added: “The Legion of Honor is an Order of which I am in fact the grand master, which is not there to preach morality”.
“And so it is not on the basis of a report or this or that thing that we take away the Legion of Honor from an artist because at that price, we would have taken away the Legion of Honor from many artists”, further underlined the President of the Republic.
And to conclude: “you can accuse someone, there are perhaps victims, but there is also a presumption of innocence that exists”, fearing otherwise of falling into “the era of suspicion”.
Olivier Faure, the boss of the PS, criticized these comments on his social networks: “Violence against women is a major cause of the five-year term… This president does not believe in anything he announces whatever the subjects”.
“Emmanuel Macron’s words on the subject of Depardieu are once again an insult to the movement to free the speech of victims of sexual violence,” the environmentalist MP Sandrine Rousseau also attacked on her networks.