5 January 2024
Two complaints against Cristina and the Portuguese public television channel RTP1 have been ruled inadmissible by the Committee for the Professional Licence of Journalists (CCPJ) and the Media Regulatory Authority (ERC) respectively.
In a decision dated 1 September 2023 relating to the criminal complaint lodged by the Polícia de Segurança Pública (PSP) against the cartoonist Cristina for the opposite cartoon, the CCPJ “unanimously considered that the conditions and/or presuppositions necessary for the opening of disciplinary proceedings, or any other sanctioning proceedings, against the journalist Cristina Sampaio were not met”.
Similarly, in a decision dated 10 October 2023, the ERC ruled that the complaint against the television channel RTP1, on which the animated film featuring Cristina’s cartoon was broadcast, was inadmissible. The media regulator considered that, although the animation in question is “strongly and resolutely critical, it is neither humiliating nor vexatious, and does not seek to stir up hatred or destabilise social peace”. In its press release, the ERC also pointed out that press cartoons are “part of a genre that, by its very nature, transgresses boundaries, using caricature, exaggeration and humour to convey an opinion on a given subject”.
The cartoonist Cristina is still awaiting the decision of the Public Prosecutor’s Office on yet another complaint against her.
Cartooning for Peace welcomes these two decisions but remains attentive to the decision of the Public Prosecutor regarding the latest complaint.
20 July 2023
Portuguese police union files complaint over an animation based on a press cartoon
A Portuguese police union has lodged a complaint following the broadcast of an animated film based on a press cartoon by cartoonist Cristina. The cartoon was broadcasted on Portuguese public television channel RTP1’s Spam Cartoon programme on 6 July 2023. The authors and the channel were also put under pressure (article in Portuguese).
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The “Shooting Stand” animation, said by the authors to evoke police violence in France, sparked a heated debate initiated by André Ventura, a far-right MP from the Chega party, who saw the animation as “purely encouraging hatred of the (Portuguese) police”. He was followed by the PSD and CSD parties (article in Portuguese).
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In response to the controversy surrounding the confusion between the representation of the French and Portuguese police forces and the threats and pressure received, the Spam Cartoon collective issued a press release (translated from Portuguese):
The cartoon that MP André Ventura and accounts linked to trade unions and PSP (Portuguese police) sympathisers shared on their social media, inviting their supporters to intimidate us, is part of an opinion column on RTP (Portuguese TV) commenting on national and international news. In this case, the subject was the recent events in France, with the unjustified death of a young man at the hands of the French police. This animation is not specifically about the PSP or the Portuguese security forces, as evidenced by the absence of corresponding symbols and uniforms and the context in which it was first broadcast. However, we are aware of the symptoms of systemic racism identified in several countries, including Portugal.
To those who have written to threaten and intimidate us, we thank you for following us. If you familiarise yourself with our work, you will certainly find points on which we agree and others on which we disagree.
The difference with us is that if we disagree with you, we don’t threaten you, we make a cartoon.
The Spam Cartoon team
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As reported by Reuters, the PSP has forwarded evidence to prosecutors, the media regulator (ERC) and the Committee for the Professional Licensing of Journalists (CCPJ), as part of a criminal complaint against the cartoon’s authors and RTP.
RTP, which has also been subject to political pressure, stated (article in Portuguese) that “under no circumstances” had Spam Cartoon “been used to incite violence against anyone”. It added: “The values of freedom of expression and opinion are the cornerstones of democracy and of RTP’s public service”.
Cartooning for Peace condemns the attempts at intimidation and the verbal violence to which Spam Cartoon and cartoonist Cristina have been subjected. Cartooning for Peace defends the right to a multiplicity of views and interpretations of cartoons, but points out the danger of amalgamation and decontextualization, particularly when it leads to the criminalization of the authors.
📢[CARTOONIST ALERT]#Portugal
A Portuguese police union has lodged a complaint following the broadcast of an animated film based on a press cartoon by cartoonist @cartooncristina on @RTP1's @spamcartoon programme: https://t.co/hPgM2rMM1T— Cartooning for Peace (@CartooningPeace) July 20, 2023
