Denis Robert
| Denis Robert | |
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| File:Denis Robert (2016).jpg
Denis Robert in 2016
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| Born | 9 May 1958 Moyeuvre-Grande |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | journalist, writer |
| Website | www.ladominationdumonde.blogspot.fr |
Denis Robert (born 9 May 1958 in Moyeuvre-Grande, Moselle) is a French journalist and a writer. Robert formerly worked for Libération newspaper for 12 years. His work is composed of novels, documentary films and essays(often called investigative journalism). He is also a painter who exposes in various Paris art galleries (La Bank, W).
His books, films and press interviews, denouncing the opaque workings of the Clearstream clearing house, which got him into numerous lawsuits (more than sixty) in France, Belgium and Luxembourg by banks, for example Menatep (a Russian bank), BGL (BNP Paribas Fortis) and of course the Clearstream company.
He was, in 2008, in the middle of a polemic with Philippe Val, the former director of the paper Charlie Hebdo, and journalist Edwy Plenel.
On 3 February 2011, after 10 years of legal procedures, he was cleared by the Court of Cassation of his conviction for both of his books Révélation$ and La Boite Noire, and also for his documentary film Les Dissimulateurs.[1]
Contents
Biography
Robert studied psychology and obtained a Master of Advanced Studies in psycholinguistics. After having started a fanzine in Lorraine, called Santiag, in 1982, he joined the redaction of the monthly magazine Actuel where he worked for a year. At the end of 1983, he joined Libération as a journalist for twelve years, first as a correspondent in eastern France then he was transferred to the financial and political affairs in the “Society” department. He resigned in 1995 in order to focus on his own writing work.[2] By this time he had already published two novels, Chair Mathilde, in 1991, and Je ferai un malheur, in 1994. But the general public only got acquainted with him in early 1996 with his essaye Pendant les affaires, les affaires continuent.
It was on this same year that Robert gathered seven anti-corruption magistrates to start the Appel de Genève, to create a European judicial area to fight financial crime more effectively. The Appel de Genève is the subject of a book La justice ou le chaos, published the same year. Then it was followed by a dozen of novels and just as many essays on the investigations of the finance multinational company, Clearstream.
In late 1997, Robert was planning to denounce the consequences of what he calls “the machine” (the capitalist economic system) for the poorest. In Portrait de groupe avant démolition, Robert presented and illustrated a collection of on the spot and shameless photographs of homeless persons made by one of their own, René Taesch.[3]
In addition to his books, Robert directed and co-directed five documentary films, one for cinema with the cineast Philippe Harel, Journal intime des affaires en cours (1998) and later four others for television : Le cahier (1999), Les Dissimulateurs (2001), Histoire clandestine (2002), L’affaire Clearstream racontée à un ouvrier de chez Daewoo (2003).
He was also the writer of successful novels : Happiness (Original title : Le bonheur), erotic book written in 2000 and translated into 14 languages, Une ville published in 2004 which was adapted to a TV series and La domination du monde edited in 2006. The same year, he also published a novel on football Le milieu du terrain which caused several lawsuits, and an investigative book Clearstream, l’enquête which is very rare because it’s sale was prohibited and removed from book stores for almost a month. In late 2006, in collaboration with a painter and friend he published an art book called Dominations, étrange objet de peinture et de littérature, in parallel with a contemporary art exhibition in Paris.
In 2009, he published Dunk a social science fiction novel. He is also the author of a successful four volume comic strip L’affaire des affaires.
The first Clearstream affair
Just after the Appel de Genève , he investigated the multinational Clearstream, which back then was unknown to the general public. He met Ernest Backes, one of the founding managers of this international clearing house.
Robert led the investigation for two years. Régis Hempel, the firm's VP and a former IT manager, explained that one of his tasks was to delete any trace of sensitive transactions. Three months before the publication of his book Révélation$, he sent a series of registered letters of which he was asking explanations from Clearstream's management and from the banks under investigation mentioned in his book.
In February 2001, the book Révélation$ came out and had the effect of a bomb. Robert held Cedel International (now known as Clearstream) responsible for being one of the major platforms of dissimulation for financial transactions on a worldwide scale. He went forward condemning them by co-producing a movie Les Dissimulateurs with Pascal Lorent, as part of the 90 minutes, Canal+’s investigation show. Business journalists were either in disbelief or hostile to it while some others were just unsure, because Clearstream was threatening them with endless lawsuits. The movie gained success among the alter-globalization movement.
The parliamentary mission on money laundering, chaired by Vincent Peillon and Arnaud Montebourg, took a hold of the revelations[4] and summoned witnesses, who were all confirming what the author had written.
Under pressure, a judicial inquiry was opened in Luxembourg. The CEO of Clearstream, André Lussi, a Swiss banker, was laid off and Clearstream was purchased in stride, for a fair amount of money, by the Deutsche Börse Group. The Deutsche Börse had been waiting for a long time to purchase this clearing house, which allowed it to control the European markets from start to finish. Note that they largely compensated André Lussi, but still sustained the lawsuits against Robert (hiring Charlie Hebdo's attorney Richard Malka,[5] among others).
In light of those developments, Robert wrote a second novel La Boite Noire and a second movie, broadcast by Canal+, l'Affaire Clearstream racontée à un ouvrier chez Daewoo.
The trials
After publishing his book Révélation$; Robert and Ernest Backes had to face thirty-one cases for defamation.[6] The complaints were raining in France, Belgium, Switzerland and even Canada, all filed by Clearstream, as well as by the Russian bank Menatep of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and by the BGL (General Bank of Luxembourg).
The editor Les Arènes and Laurent Beccaria accounted that the claims for damages exceeded their annual turnover. Canal+'s Legal Department engaged itself in expensive lawsuits.
As months go by, the discharges followed one after the other during the first instance, but the plaintiffs systematically appealed (which were dismissed) and lodged an appeal with the Court of Cassation (which were dismissed as well). Five years later, there were only two pending proceedings left, both appealed: one after a judgement in favour of Clearstream, and the other in favour of Robert. The judges considered “the allegations are legitimate and supported by strong arguments”.
On 11 June 2008, Robert decides to stop expressing himself about Clearstream, for being under too much pressure.[7]
Procedures in France
Clearstream filed three complaints for defamation against Robert; the first for his book Révélation$, the second one for his book La Boite Noire and the third one for his documentary film, broadcast on Canal+, Les Dissimulateurs, all having the subject of dirty money laundered by Clearstream.[8]
First Instance
On 29 March 2004, the 17th Chamber of the Criminal Court of Paris convicted Robert for defamation, both for his book Révélation$ and for his documentary film broadcast on Canal+, on the subject of the activities of the financial institution. However, the same chamber dismissed Clearstream's complaint against La Boite Noire in October 2003. Both Clearstream and Robert appealed against the decisions which did not turn out in their favour.[8]
Appeal Court
In 2008, the Appeal Court of Paris convicted Robert in three cases.[8]
On 4 December 2006, Robert was sentenced to pay a 1500€ fine for damages for using defamatory wording about Clearstream in VSD. The writer appealed against the sentence, saying that the interview in VSD was truncated. Furthermore, he won every lawsuit filed by Clearstream against his interviews or published and broadcast articles by France 2, Le Point, Le Nouvel Observateur and other various websites.
Based on the belief that the decisions violated the European Convention on Human Rights, Clearstream lodged an appeal with the Court of Cassation, because they were abusively forbidding them any legal action.
The Luxembourgish company estimated they were in the impossibility to be represented by a natural person in this legal process in France, as they are bound to by the Luxembourgish law to be chaired by a board of directors of collegial nature. On 23 May 2006, the dismissal of both of those appeals with the Court of Cassation was asked by the advocate-general at the Court of Cassation, Francis Fréchède. The advocate-general assessed that Clearstream could have used the civil procedure, in which it is not mandatory to be represented by a natural person to act.
Court of Cassation
At last, in February 2011, Robert won these three cases in Court of Cassation, which did put forward the seriousness of the investigation, the freedom of expression and the public interest.[8]
Decision No.106 from 3 February 2011 of the Court of Cassation[9] “breaks and cancels in its entirety” the decision of the Appeal Court, rejecting all Clearstream's arguments. The judges commented that “the public interest on the subject and the seriousness of the investigation, led by an investigative journalist, allowed the wording and the contentious allegations , the Appeal Court violated the above-mentioned texts” therefore cancelling Robert’s previous convictions.[10] The Court of Cassation specifically stated that “when a public debate of public interest is involved, the journalistic freedom includes the possible resort of a certain dose of exaggeration, even provocation in the debate”.[11]
Robert reckoned that this decision is also a reply to the attacks of Richard Malka and Philippe Val made against him.[12][13]
Indictment in Luxembourg (January 2006)
On 27 January 2006, Robert was indicted in Luxembourg for insult, calumny and slander. The complaint was aiming at the denunciation in the book Révélation$ of a transaction between BCCI and BGL banks. Robert qualified this transaction as being “illegal”, even though a decision allowing this transaction had been previously made by a Luxembourgish court.
Those supporting Robert emphasized that the same complaints against BGL had already been dismissed in France on two occasions. The Court of Cassation agreed with BGL and the procedures would resume. Robert and also Florian Bourges (ex-auditor of Arthur Anderson, who used the Clearstream files and submitted them to Robert. cf. La Boite Noire) were sued by Clearstream (lawyer: Richard Malka).
This same “sharing” of documents led to theft and breach of thrust indictments in France within the context of a complaint filed by Clearstream.
Robert was facing a prison sentence, a fine that can be very high in Luxembourg, in addition to lawyer fees. In an ironic twist of fate, it is the European judicial area that he contributed to build with the Appel de Genève that allowed this procedure to Luxembourg justice system.
Several support petitions were opened.
Latest judgment of the Cassation Court (2011)
Quote from an article from the paper Le Nouvel Observateur : “It is a victory for me, but also a jurisprudence for all journalists” said Denis Robert after being cleared of all charges in Cassation Court, and the judgments stated that in long and difficult investigations there might be some inaccuracies, and even outrageous formulations, and that it is inappropriate to convict if the work had been done in good faith, in a serious manner and for the general interest.
Denis Robert also stated, “I can bring out my books again” and qualified the Luxembourgish company (Clearstream) of being “The best laundry in the world” and also “international finance system spiraling out of control”.[14]
Bibliography
Novels
- Chair Mathilde, Ed Bernard Barrault, 1991
- Je ferai un malheur, Fayard, 1995
- Notre héros au travail, Fayard, 1997
- Tout va bien puisque nous sommes en vie, Stock, 1998
- Le Bonheur, les arènes, 2000, Pocket 2001
- Une ville, Julliard, 2003
- Le Milieu du terrain, les Arènes, 2005
- La Domination du monde, Julliard, 2006, Pocket 2007
- Une affaire personnelle, Flammarion, 2008
- Dunk, Julliard, 2009
- Vue imprenable sur la folie du monde, Les Arènes, 2013
Essays
- Pendant les "affaires", les affaires continuent, Stock, 1996 , le livre de Poche, 1998
- La Justice ou le chaos, Stock, 1996 , le Livre de Poche, 1998
- Deux heures de lucidité : entretien avec Noam Chomsky (with D. Robert and W. Zarachowickz), Les Arènes, 1999
- Révolte.com, Les Arènes, 2000
- Révélation$, Les Arènes, 2001
- La Boîte noire, Les Arènes, 2002
- Leçons de journalisme, 2004
- Clearstream, l'enquête, Les Arènes-Julliard, 2006,
- Au cœur de l'affaire Villemin : Mémoires d'un rat, Hugo et Compagnie, 2006,
- Tout Clearstream, éd. Les Arènes, 2011
- Mohicans, éd. Julliard, 306 p., 4 novembre 2015
Others and collaborations
- Convocation à la mise en examen des œuvres de Denis Robert, Galerie W, 2008
- Portrait de groupe avant démolition (text of Denis Robert on photos by René Taesch)
- Deux heures de lucidité : entretien avec Noam Chomsky (with Denis Robert and Weronika Zarachowickz)
- Tout va bien (scenario) with cartoon drawings of Thomas Clément, 2005,
- Journal intime des affaires en cours, scenario with Philippe Harel, Stock, 1997
- Dominations, book of Kombart and paintings, with Philippe Pasquet, Hugodoc, 2006
- L'affaire des affaires T1 "l'argent invisible", comic strip with Laurent Astier and Yan Lindingre, éd. Dargaud, 2009
- L'affaire des affaires T2 "l'enquête", comic strip with Laurent Astier, éd. Dargaud, 2009
- L'affaire des affaires T3 "Clearstream Manipulation", comic strip with Laurent Astier, éd. Dargaud, 2011
- L'affaire des affaires T4 "Justice", comic strip with Laurent Astier, éd. Dargaud, 2012
- L'affaire des affaires (L'intégrale) with Laurent Astier, éd. Dargaud, 2014
- Le circuit Mandelberg with Franck Biancarelli, éd Dargaud, 2015
Movies
- Journal intime des affaires en cours (1998)
- Le Cahier, (2000)
- Les Dissimulateurs (2001)
- Histoire clandestine de ma région (with Gilles Cayatte, 2001)
- L'Affaire ClearStream racontée à un ouvrier de chez Daewoo (2002)
- Les Munch soudés à jamais, (2013)
- Mortelle épopée, with Gilles Cayatte, (2014)
- L'Enquête, de Vincent Garenq, 2015. The film traces the investigation conducted by Denis Robert, played by Gilles Lellouche.
- Cavanna, même pas mort (52 minutes, made for television with her daughter Nina Robert 2015)
- Jusqu'à l'ultime seconde j'écrirai (made for cinema with her daughter Nina Robert, released on 17 juin 2015)[15]
Music
- Voleurs de poules, pilleurs de foule, 2007, by DR et les Luxembourgeois.
References
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External links
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