Born in Paris, he was the nephew ofFrançois Mitterrand (1916–1996), who was thepresident of France from 1981 to 1995, and the son of engineer Robert Mitterrand[1] (1915–2002) and Édith Cahier, the niece ofEugène Deloncle, the co-founder of "La Cagoule".[citation needed] Owing to his family heritage, Mitterrand acquired Tunisian citizenship in 1995.[2] He was openly bisexual.
Mitterrand attended theLycée Janson de Sailly in Paris and studied history and geography at theParis West University Nanterre La Défense, and political science atSciences Po. He taught economics, history, and geography atEABJM from 1968 to 1971. In 1978, he was a film critic atJ'informe. From 1971 to 1986, he ran severalart film cinemas in Paris (Olympic Palace, Entrepôt, and Olympic-Entrepôt).[3] He also had roles in a number of films, and in the 1980s was active as a producer and director in TV productions.[citation needed] Mitterrand also penned a monthly column forTêtu.[4]
Mitterrand's novelThe Bad Life (French:La mauvaise vie), which mixed autobiographical and fictionalised elements, was the source of significant controversy. In the book he detailed his "delight" whilst visiting themale brothels ofBangkok, and wrote ..."I got into the habit of paying for boys ... The profusion of young, very attractive and immediately available boys put me in a state of desire I no longer needed to restrain or hide." Mitterrand's writings were applauded for their honesty at time of release, but resurfaced in a different light four years later following his defence ofRoman Polanski, who had beendetained in Switzerland and awaitingextradition to face American charges for sexually abusing a minor.[8]
On 5 October 2009,Marine Le Pen quoted sections of the book on French television, accusing him of having sex with underage boys and engaging in "sex tourism", demanding that Mitterrand resign from the government. He was also criticised by then-Socialist Party spokesmanBenoît Hamon, who stated that "as a minister of culture, he has drawn attention to himself by defending [Polanski], and he has written a book where he said he took advantage of sexual tourism. To say the least, I find it shocking."[9] On the other hand, he received support from a close aide toNicolas Sarkozy who said the French President backed his Culture Minister, describing the controversy around him as "pathetic".[10]
The novel's mixture of fact and fiction complicated his defense; while Mitterrand insisted that book was not an autobiography, the publisher described it as a "novel inspired by autobiography", and was similarly described as an "autobiographical novel" by theBBC.[1][11][12] In his own defence. Mitterrand stated, "Each time I was with people who were my age, or who were five years younger – there wasn't the slightest ambiguity – and who were consenting", and that he uses the term "boys" loosely, both in his life and in the book. He also declared, "I condemn sexual tourism, which is a disgrace. I condemnpaedophilia, which I have never in any way participated in."[13]
^12e Festival International du Film sur l´Art 8-13 mars 1994, Commanditaire Officiel (in French & English). Montréal: Pratt & Whitney Canada, 1994, p.35.
