EN Official Journal of the European Union C 224/178

P8_TA(2016)0430

Request for the waiver of the immunity of Jean-François Jalkh

European Parliament decision of 22 November 2016 on the request for waiver of the immunity of Jean-François Jalkh (2016/2107(IMM))

(2018/C 224/30)

The European Parliament,

— having regard to the request for waiver of the immunity of Jean-François Jalkh, forwarded on 14 April 2016 by the French Minister of Justice in connection with a judicial inquiry (file No 1422400530) opened against Mr Jean-François Jalkh at the Paris District Court in response to an application with joinder filed by the Association ‘National Office for Vigilance against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA)’ on grounds of public incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence and announced in plenary on 8 June 2016,

— having heard Jean-François Jalkh in accordance with Rule 9(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

— having regard to Articles 8 and 9 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union, and Article 6(2) of the Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage,

— having regard to the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 12 May 1964, 10 July 1986, 15 and 21 October 2008, 19 March 2010, 6 September 2011 and 17 January 2013 (1),

— having regard to Article 26 of the Constitution of the French Republic, as amended by Constitutional Law of 4 August 1995 No 95-880,

— having regard to Rule 5(2), Rule 6(1) and Rule 9 of its Rules of Procedure,

— having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs (A8-0319/2016),

A. whereas the Public Prosecutor at the Paris Court of Appeal has requested the waiver of the parliamentary immunity of a Member of the European Parliament, Jean-François Jalkh, in connection with a legal action concerning an alleged offence;

B. whereas the waiver of immunity of Jean-François Jalkh relates to an alleged offence of incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence in respect of a person or group of persons on account of their origin or membership or non-membership of a particular ethnic group, nation, race or religion, an offence provided for in French law, namely in Article 24(8) and Article 23(1) of the Law of 29 July 1881;

C. whereas Jean-François Jalkh was accused by the Association ‘National Office for Vigilance against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA)’ in an application lodged with the Senior Examining Magistrate in Paris on 12 August 2014;

D. whereas the complaint concerned statements made by Mr Jean-Marie Le Pen during an interview disseminated on the website www.frontnational.com, and then on the blog www.jeanmarielepen.com on 6 June 2014 in response to the mention by a member of the audience of the name of the singer Patrick Bruel, who had said that he could no longer perform in towns which had elected mayors belonging to the National Front, in which he said: ‘That does not surprise me. Listen, we’ll put them all in the oven together next time’; whereas Jean-François Jalkh was the publications director of the official website of the National Front;

E. whereas Article 9 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union states that Members shall enjoy, in the territory of their own State, the immunities accorded to members of the Parliament of that State;

F. whereas Article 26 of the French Constitution provides that no Member of the Parliament shall be prosecuted, investigated, arrested, detained or tried in respect of opinions expressed or votes cast in the performance of his official duties;

G. whereas the scope of immunity accorded to Members of the French Parliament corresponds in fact to the scope of immunity accorded to Members of the European Parliament under Article 8 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union; whereas the Court of Justice has held that for a Member of the European Parliament to enjoy immunity an opinion must be expressed by the Member in the performance of his duties, thus entailing the requirement of a link between the opinion expressed and the parliamentary duties; whereas such link must be direct and obvious;

H. whereas Jean-François Jalkh had not assumed his duties as a Member of the European Parliament when the alleged offence took place, namely on 6 June 2014, assuming them only as of 1 July 2014;

I. whereas the charges are manifestly unrelated to the position of Jean-François Jalkh as a Member of the European Parliament and concern instead activities of a purely national or regional nature, given that the statements related to the local elections in France held on 23 and 30 March 2014 and to his position as the Front National’s publications director with editorial control over the federation’s websites;

J. whereas the alleged actions do not relate to opinions expressed or votes cast by the Member of the European Parliament in the performance of his duties within the meaning of Article 8 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union;

K. whereas there is no suspicion of any attempt to obstruct the parliamentary work of Jean-François Jalkh (fumus persecutionis) behind the judicial inquiry which was opened following an application by the Association ‘National Office for Vigilance against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA)’;

1. Decides to waive the immunity of Jean-François Jalkh;

2. Instructs its President to forward this decision and the report of its committee responsible immediately to the Minister of Justice of the French Republic and to Jean-François Jalkh.

(1) Judgment of the Court of Justice of 12 May 1964, Wagner v Fohrmann and Krier, 101/63, ECLI:EU:C:1964:28; judgment of the Court of Justice of 10 July 1986, Wybot v Faure and others, 149/85, ECLI:EU:C:1986:310; judgment of the General Court of 15 October 2008, Mote v Parliament, T-345/05, ECLI:EU:T:2008:440; judgment of the Court of Justice of 21 October 2008, Marra v De Gregorio and Clemente, C 200/07 and C-201/07, ECLI:EU:C:2008:579; judgment of the General Court of 19 March 2010, Gollnisch v Parliament, T-42/06, ECLI:EU:T:2010:102; judgment of the Court of Justice of 6 September 2011, Patriciello, C 163/10, ECLI: EU:C:2011:543; judgment of the General Court of 17 January 2013, Gollnisch v Parliament, T-346/11 and T-347/11, ECLI:EU:T:2013:23.