Freedom of expression must not turn into ‘fundamentalist behaviour in reverse,’ said French author, journalist and literary critic Florence Noiville. She was in Puducherry for the inauguration of Alliance Francaise’s Pondy Partages – 2015, which is being organised in association with the Department of Tourism.
Speaking to The Hindu , Ms. Noiville said that while freedom of expression is an asset of civilisation and the key to democracy, it must be seen whether it is being used for positive measures. “We talk about Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité. Somehow though, we seem to leave out equality and fraternity,” she said, adding that being ‘tactful’ is essential to freedom of expression. “We should look at embracing different perspectives, and see how interesting they are,” Ms. Noiville added.
Olivier Litvine, director, Alliance Francaise, who was present, said that when a group says ‘I decide’ or ‘I define’ what is ‘valid,’ then the true meaning of freedom of expression is lost. “One group thinks it is the centre and the others are periphery,” he said.
There has to be a critical and constructive perspective, said Ms. Noiville, giving the example of The Malady of Islam by Abdelwahab Meddeb. “There is no caricaturing and it has been done through a scholarly and deep study. That is valid. It deplores the state of things and the need for reforms with scholarly citations of texts. This should be the way to go about it,” she said.
Ms. Noiville called for the ‘spirit of respect for co-existence’ as the only way forward when so many different communities exist.
As the Foreign Fiction Editor at the Books section of Le Monde, Ms. Noiville relies on events such as Pondy Partages and the Jaipur Literature Festival to come across different points of view, allowing her to ‘open the pages of Le Monde to other cultures and voices.’ Reviews of books offering a different world view to the newspaper’s readers helps to counter the lies that have been repeated, she said.
Ms. Noiville appreciated the scope of events at Pondy Partages which has included a good mixture of local talents and people from abroad, and said it helped different kind of artists to exchange views.
On Puducherry, she said, “I find Puducherry to be a strange, amazing and fascinating mix of cultures: Indian, French and a touch of British. These seem to intertwine peacefully.”
It should not turn into ‘fundamentalist behaviour in reverse,’ says French author
