Paris affirmed, through Culture Minister Catherine Bigard on Thursday, its “firm” adherence to freedom of creativity and “the necessity of protecting the dignity and safety of artists,” the day after writer Kamal Daoud announced his effective prison sentence in Algeria. Last November, an Algerian court accepted a complaint against the writer and his wife (a psychiatrist) on the grounds that they revealed and used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Black Decade in his novel “Nymphs,” which won the Goncourt Prize.

Published on: 04/23/2026 - 13:39 Last updated: 04/23/2026 - 15:40

In a statement received by Agence France-Presse, French Minister of Culture Catherine Bigard affirmed her “firm” adherence to freedom of creativity, stressing “the necessity of protecting the dignity and safety of artists,” the day after the announcement of the conviction of French-Algerian writer Kamal Daoud in Algeria.

Biggar emphasized her "firm adherence to creative freedom, which is often tested in the tense aspects she addresses."

Read also the tragedy of writer Kamal Daoud: a “traitor” in Algeria, a “bad Arab” in France

She stressed "the necessity of protecting the dignity and safety of artists, as literature is a vital space for creativity."

The novelist residing in France announced on Wednesday that an Algerian court had sentenced him “to three years in prison and a fine of five million Algerian dinars (about 37.45 thousand dollars), in implementation of the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation” for his treatment of the Algerian civil war in his novel “Houriyat,” which won the 2024 Goncourt Prize.

Daoud added, "The court issued an official decision preventing me from returning to Algeria."

Last November, an Algerian court accepted a first complaint against the writer and his wife, a psychiatrist, on the grounds that they revealed and used the story of a survivor of a massacre during the Black Decade in his novel “Nymphs.”

Algerian law prohibits any work dealing with the black decade between 1992 and 2002. Daoud is also being pursued under two international arrest warrants issued by Algeria in May 2025.

France 24/AFP

Keywords related to the article

The content you want to browse is no longer in service or is currently unavailable.