Tintin, Captain Haddock and the faithful dog Snowy found themselves on Friday at the heart of the defense of an anti-feminist blogger accused of incitement to hatred against women. Like cartoonist Hergé, Jean-Claude Rochefort claims to have resorted to “satire” by illustrating the Polytechnique killer in his blog celebrating “Saint-Marc-Lépine-Day”.
Posted at 1:15 p.m.
Tintin’s albums The vspharaoh’s igares and Objective moon. Action-packed clips from the sci-fi movie Stargate starring Kurt Russell. These works of fiction presented Friday in the courtroom are part of the astonishing defense of Jean-Claude Rochefort, who described himself as an “old gentleman who wrote on old subjects”.
The worshiper of Marc Lépine spoke at length about the plot of the album Pharaoh’s Cigarson the personality of the dog Milou – “He is a little alcoholic” – and on the imaginary countries of the universe of Tintin, Borduria and Syldavie, subjects of a blog of the accused.
“I am not aware of a defense of Tintin in criminal law”, intervened judge Pierre Labrie, perplexed by the approach of the defense. “It’s to appreciate the dialogues and the characters. It is not of judicial knowledge, ”explained the defense lawyer, Mr.e Rodolphe Bourgeois, who then asked his client to dissect the two albums.
Photo ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Me Rodolphe Bourgeois, lawyer for Jean-Claude Rochefort
Jean-Claude Rochefort is accused of having deliberately fomented hatred against women in publications published in 2019 before the commemorations of the Polytechnique massacre. In a “countdown” before “Saint-Marc-Lépine Day”, the author encouraged the “disciples” of Marc Lépine “to polish their rifle”. On his last blog post published the day before the commemorations, the accused presented a Marc Lépine holding a long weapon in front of a dozen women.
If Hergé’s characters are thus found in the defense of the accused, it is because Tintin and Captain Haddock are used in certain photo montages published by the accused. For example, in a post published three days before the commemorations, Tintin presents the killer Marc Lépine in front of the “iconic door” of the Polytechnique.
“The important thing was to do it gently,” said the character in the face of Marc Lépine.
According to Jean-Claude Rochefort, these montages should not be taken seriously, since Hergé’s characters are “a bit ridiculous”. “When Tintin says something, it’s not serious,” argued the accused. Thus, when he makes Marc Lépine speak with a “long bubble” of comic strip, it is to “turn a situation into ridicule”, he explained.
Note that on multiple occasions in his blog, Jean-Claude Rochefort presents a Marc Lépine armed to the teeth, notably in front of a memorial in honor of the 14 women murdered in December 1989. He depicts the author of the mass feminicide as a “hero”.
“It’s my way of criticizing, exaggerating on purpose, so much that everyone sees it. This is not to be taken literally, ”defended Jean-Claude Rochefort.
He is not “against all women”
The 73-year-old insists that he is not “against all women”, quite the contrary. In his blog, his “satire” was aimed at “radical feminists”, those who are “the most virulent and the most aggressive”, explained Jean-Claude Rochefort. He also says he is very open to talking with a “reasonable woman”. “I am not unreasonable,” he assured.
When he published his blog, Jean-Claude Rochefort would never have thought that these writings could have such consequences, he maintained. “I didn’t want to go on a crusade, I’m not the leader of any movement. I make a distinction between feminist and women,” he argued.
If he celebrates “Saint-Marc-Lépine Day” in his publications, it is simply to “turn into ridicule” the exaggerated coverage of the commemorations of the Polytechnique massacre, he testified.
“It almost becomes like a religious ceremony. This is to make fun of me. There may be an exaggeration. Me too, I exaggerated on my side. Them, they seem to make a small religion with martyrs, we are going to put a saint in there, ”explained Jean-Claude Rochefort.
In his eyes, certain “ideological groups in the universities” accuse “all men” of being responsible for the killings and use this event to “blame” the men. “It was my feeling, and the feeling of the gentleman in the street,” he said.
His questioning continues Friday afternoon. It will then be the turn of the Crown prosecutor, Ms.e Roxane Laporte, to cross-examine him.