maandag, april 05, 2004
Reporters Without Borders voiced relief at being ordered today by a Paris court to pay only 6,000 euros to Diane Diaz Lopez, the heir of Cuban photographer Alberto "Korda" Diaz Gutierrez, for non-compliance with a court order of 9 July 2003 banning it from using Korda's famous photograph of Ernesto "Che" Guevara in a beret.
"As Ms. Diaz Lopez had demanded in excess of one million euros, we think this ruling is reasonable and that it assigns an appropriate degree of importance to the offence," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Robert Ménard said. "The sole aim of Ms. Diaz Lopez's demands was to stifle our organisation, and the judge did not play along," he added.
The court said in its ruling that "the excessive demands made by the plaintiff appear clearly out of proportion with the established facts."
Reporters Without Borders pointed out that it has repeatedly been the target of hostility from the Cuban authorities since the arrest of 75 dissidents in March 2003. Reporters Without Borders activists were physically attacked during a demonstration outside the Cuban embassy in Paris in April 2003, the organisation was the target of a campaign of insults in the official press, and Cuba's representatives called for the withdrawal of its consultative status with the United Nations.
In today's hearing, the Paris higher-level court was asked to rule on whether Reporters Without Borders had respected the 9 July 2003 ban on use of Korda's photograph of Che and to determine what sum that the organisation had to pay Diaz Lopez. Korda, who is deceased, lived in Havana.
Bron: Reporters Without Borders.
"As Ms. Diaz Lopez had demanded in excess of one million euros, we think this ruling is reasonable and that it assigns an appropriate degree of importance to the offence," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Robert Ménard said. "The sole aim of Ms. Diaz Lopez's demands was to stifle our organisation, and the judge did not play along," he added.
The court said in its ruling that "the excessive demands made by the plaintiff appear clearly out of proportion with the established facts."
Reporters Without Borders pointed out that it has repeatedly been the target of hostility from the Cuban authorities since the arrest of 75 dissidents in March 2003. Reporters Without Borders activists were physically attacked during a demonstration outside the Cuban embassy in Paris in April 2003, the organisation was the target of a campaign of insults in the official press, and Cuba's representatives called for the withdrawal of its consultative status with the United Nations.
In today's hearing, the Paris higher-level court was asked to rule on whether Reporters Without Borders had respected the 9 July 2003 ban on use of Korda's photograph of Che and to determine what sum that the organisation had to pay Diaz Lopez. Korda, who is deceased, lived in Havana.
Bron: Reporters Without Borders.
# posted by Jan-Edward : 23:56
|
|