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Check this one out:

http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/03/06/franceban/index.php

That is insane.

Remind me not to get into a fight..or film one if I ever go to France!

It's arguable that this is what the laws says or means. A couple of other lists I'm on have commentary from actual French-speaking lawyers to the effect that the law is targeted specifically at people who participate in violent offenses that are committed to be videotaped. But from a yank:

Seth Finkelstein wrote: To my knowledge, the law in question is an attempt to stop an ugly phenomenon: "happy slapping": <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_slapping">wikipedia</a>

It's hard to tell because my French is really crap, but the law seems to say it doesn't apply "when the recording or the diffusion results from the normal exercise of a profession devoted to inform the public or is carried out in order to be used as proof in justice". So the crud about not being allowed to videotape p*lice violence is not relevant. The problem is that the French have tight legal definitions of who the professionals are, so I think more explanations are needed.

The French haven't covered themselves in glory in a whole range of
areas, and the irony of a country which will bomb a ship and murder
members of an organisation such as Greenpeace, and arrogantly
detonate nuclear devices in the Pacific, and then impose legal restrictions
of people photographing anything is extraordinary.

A pox on them. They shit me.

Greg B wrote:The French haven't covered themselves in glory in a whole range of
areas, and the irony of a country which will bomb a ship and murder
members of an organisation such as Greenpeace, and arrogantly
detonate nuclear devices in the Pacific, and then impose legal restrictions
of people photographing anything is extraordinary.

A pox on them. They shit me.

Je conviens

Law is an ass and some laws can be interpreted in different ways especially when you do not know what's in it... It is worth noting that the same Sarkozy as a minister is the one who gets the journalists on location half an hour before the police arrive to film the arrest of suspected criminals.
They are in an election year, so this may not be the end of it

glamy wrote:They are in an election year, so this may not be the end of it

Why does that sound familiar?

LIBERTE!
If the Frech public allow this to be legislated then they deserve their miserable lives. May they wash even less often.

Matt. K wrote:LIBERTE!
If the Frech public allow this to be legislated then they deserve their miserable lives. May they wash even less often.

Um...er....All except for Glamy, of course.

Greg B wrote:The French haven't covered themselves in glory in a whole range of
areas, and the irony of a country which will bomb a ship and murder
members of an organisation such as Greenpeace, and arrogantly
detonate nuclear devices in the Pacific, and then impose legal restrictions
of people photographing anything is extraordinary.

A pox on them. They shit me.

Matt K wrote:
LIBERTE!
If the French public allow this to be legislated then they deserve their miserable lives. May they wash even less often..

Umm ... excuse me guys, but to paint the whole of the nation of France and it's peoples with the same brush as their government ... isn't that just a wee bit unfair? Isn't that the same as another country looking at us, as Aussie citizens, and saying that we as individuals should be "poxed" because of the decisions that, say, Johnny Howard, has made? Some Aussies support him but some don't. Should those who don't be condemned because they happen to be citizens of a country that is run by JH and his government?

I have stayed with several French friends in France, am still friends with all of them after many years and have found the French to be the same as any nationality - some bad, some good, some stink (the ones that don't wash ) and some don't (the ones that do).

Just my thoughts .... Please don't throw rotten eggs on me ... maybe some French toast though ...

Nikkofan
My comments were tongue in cheek and meant in the nicest possible way. I also have friends in France and have experienced their hospitality. As to your comments on judging us all by the action of John Howard I have always had the suspicion that a nation gets the government it deserves. That was the basis of my'dig' at the french citizenery. Glamy excepted, of course.

Matt. K wrote:Nikkofan
My comments were tongue in cheek and meant in the nicest possible way. I also have friends in France and have experienced their hospitality. As to your comments on judging us all by the action of John Howard I have always had the suspicion that a nation gets the government it deserves. That was the basis of my'dig' at the french citizenery. Glamy excepted, of course.

OK, Matt, sorry if I came across as a bit of a prat . It just seems that France is on the top of many people's hit list, when I personally love the place and have found the typical French people to be warm, hospitable, decent and very undeserving of the bad reputation that their government truly does deserve. My apologies if I upset anyone with my response to the French-flaming.

As for a nation getting the government it deserves, I really hope you're wrong there. I prefer to think that mistakes can be made at any level. Otherwise it raises a whole series of "Why?" questions regarding the state of some nations.

Send our government to France and theirs to us - would they or us be any better off - you betcha - the food would be better, the perfumes, the clothes, the cars, the nightclubs, the music and best of all I could smoke Gauloise again

Gauloise - you would have to be quick Chris before the tobacco fell out of them

Nikkofan wrote:

Greg B wrote:The French haven't covered themselves in glory in a whole range of
areas, and the irony of a country which will bomb a ship and murder
members of an organisation such as Greenpeace, and arrogantly
detonate nuclear devices in the Pacific, and then impose legal restrictions
of people photographing anything is extraordinary.

A pox on them. They shit me.

Matt K wrote:
LIBERTE!
If the French public allow this to be legislated then they deserve their miserable lives. May they wash even less often..

Umm ... excuse me guys, but to paint the whole of the nation of France and it's peoples with the same brush as their government ... isn't that just a wee bit unfair? Isn't that the same as another country looking at us, as Aussie citizens, and saying that we as individuals should be "poxed" because of the decisions that, say, Johnny Howard, has made? Some Aussies support him but some don't. Should those who don't be condemned because they happen to be citizens of a country that is run by JH and his government?

I have stayed with several French friends in France, am still friends with all of them after many years and have found the French to be the same as any nationality - some bad, some good, some stink (the ones that don't wash ) and some don't (the ones that do).

Just my thoughts .... Please don't throw rotten eggs on me ... maybe some French toast though ...

Nikkofan, Of course you are absolutely correct, and my post would have been considerably more appropriate with, instead of "The French", I had written "French Governments".

Your point about the equivalent situation in Australia is spot on, I would be appalled to have any reflection placed on me based on anything that Howard and his cronies say or do. <shiver>

Thank you for your post.

For those wondering what happened to all the discussion in this thread on the Australian online petition about changes to photographers rights in Australia - I've split it into it's own thread to make it easier to find. the new thread is HERE