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Russian Behind Videos That Felled Paris Mayoral Contender Is Arrested in Separate Case New Paris Mayoral Contender Is Named After Scandal Topples Macron Ally
(about 13 hours later)
PARIS — A Russian performance artist who claimed responsibility for releasing sexual videos that brought down a high-profile candidate for Paris mayor last week has been detained by the police in a separate case from December, the prosecutor’s office said. PARIS — The French health minister, Agnes Buzyn, was named as a new candidate for mayor of Paris on Sunday, after a scramble to replace the original contender, who abruptly withdrew after a leak of sex videos on social media.
The artist, Pyotr Pavlensky, who received asylum in France in 2017, was questioned on Saturday at a police station in Paris over a case involving “violence with a weapon” on Dec. 31, the Paris prosecutor’s office said. French news outlets reported that Mr. Pavlensky was accused of drawing a knife during a dispute at a Paris apartment in which two people were injured. The choice of Ms. Buzyn came just two days after a frantic search for a candidate began, underscoring the importance that President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party places on winning the mayor’s office — and emerging from a scandal.
The mayoral candidate, Benjamin Griveaux, a former French government spokesman, withdrew from the race on Friday, after the private text messages he is said to have sent to an unidentified woman emerged online Wednesday. In a videotaped statement, Mr. Griveaux did not directly cite a connection between the explicit videos and his withdrawal, but he described “defamatory statements, lies, anonymous attacks, the disclosure of stolen private conversations, as well as death threats.” Benjamin Griveaux withdrew from the mayoral race after explicit videos began circulating on social media, a leak operation claimed by a controversial Russian performance artist, Piotr Pavlensky. Mr. Pavlensky and his girlfriend were being questioned by police investigators over the weekend on counts of invasion of privacy and diffusing images of a sexual character without permission.
Mr. Pavlensky told the newspaper Libération that he had published the videos to expose Mr. Griveaux, a married father of three, as hypocritical because the candidate invoked “family values” and “always mentioned his wife and children as an example.” In claiming responsibility for the leak of the sexual videos, Mr. Pavlensky denounced the “big hypocrisy” of Mr. Griveaux, a married father of three who put family at the forefront of his campaign.
The prosecutor’s office said that Mr. Griveaux filed a complaint on Saturday for invasion of his private life and that an investigation had been opened. The post of mayor of Paris is held now by Anne Hidalgo, a Socialist who is seeking re-election and favored in polls for the two-round balloting to be held in one month.
The circumstances surrounding his withdrawal from the race sent shock waves through the political establishment of a country that has a tradition of keeping the private lives of public servants out of view. The post is a symbol of prestige, and for Mr. Macron’s young party, En Marche, a Paris victory could compensate for losses elsewhere around France.
Mr. Griveaux was the candidate of President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist Republic on the Move party, which is searching for a quick replacement. The party said on Friday that it planned to name its new mayoral candidate this week. The two-round election begins in a month. “I am doing this with my heart, with commitment,” Ms. Buzyn said shortly after being named the governing party contender, reflecting a change of heart since Friday. She said then that she would refuse to take Mr. Griveaux’s place because of important work in her ministry amid the coronavirus outbreak, which has sickened 12 people in France.
The mayor of Paris is a high-profile job that Mr. Macron’s party was counting to win. But Mr. Griveaux had been struggling, with polls showing him in third place behind Mayor Anne Hidalgo and a conservative candidate. The addition of Ms. Buzyn puts three women front and center in the battle for Paris, with a conservative former justice minister, Rachida Dati, polling in second place. Succeeding Ms. Buzyn as health minister will be Olivier Veran, a lawmaker and a doctor, as is Ms. Buzyn.
Another candidate with a national profile, the mathematician Cédric Villani, was ousted from Mr. Macron’s party after he turned down a personal request from the president to withdraw from the race and back Mr. Griveaux. French news outlets reported that party leaders met discreetly with Mr. Villani on Saturday, a possible sign of the breadth of its frantic search for a new candidate. The scandal over the sexually explicit material has led to questions about social media’s role in a democracy and about whether Mr. Pavlensky was a front man for more sinister forces wanting to bring down Mr. Griveaux.
The episode also has raised indignation across political classes in a country that traditionally respects politicians’ private lives.
Mr. Griveaux, a former French government spokesman, withdrew from the race on Friday, after the private text messages he is said to have sent to an unidentified woman emerged online Wednesday. In a videotaped statement, Mr. Griveaux did not directly cite a connection between the explicit videos and his withdrawal, but he described “defamatory statements, lies, anonymous attacks, the disclosure of stolen private conversations, as well as death threats.”
Mr. Pavlensky created a special site to post the explicit video material, believed to have been extracted from cellphone exchanges. He wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday that the French authorities had taken down the site, apologizing to followers.Mr. Pavlensky created a special site to post the explicit video material, believed to have been extracted from cellphone exchanges. He wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday that the French authorities had taken down the site, apologizing to followers.
He was quoted on Friday by the French broadcaster BFM-TV as saying that Mr. Griveaux was “a candidate who has lied to his electors” and “very dangerous” for Paris.He was quoted on Friday by the French broadcaster BFM-TV as saying that Mr. Griveaux was “a candidate who has lied to his electors” and “very dangerous” for Paris.
Mr. Pavlensky has had trouble with the law before. He was convicted in January 2019 of setting fire to a Bank of France branch and damaging its facade in 2017. He was sentenced to a year in prison, plus a two-year suspended sentence. The judge allowed him to walk free because he had already spent 11 months in pretrial detention.Mr. Pavlensky has had trouble with the law before. He was convicted in January 2019 of setting fire to a Bank of France branch and damaging its facade in 2017. He was sentenced to a year in prison, plus a two-year suspended sentence. The judge allowed him to walk free because he had already spent 11 months in pretrial detention.
He left Russia in 2017 after being told of rape accusations against him. While in Russia, he set a fire in front of the Russian federal security agency and nailed his scrotum to Red Square in Moscow, in what he said was a metaphor for Russian political apathy.He left Russia in 2017 after being told of rape accusations against him. While in Russia, he set a fire in front of the Russian federal security agency and nailed his scrotum to Red Square in Moscow, in what he said was a metaphor for Russian political apathy.
Mr. Pavlensky was granted asylum in France after fleeing Russia.Mr. Pavlensky was granted asylum in France after fleeing Russia.