Yesterday, a lawyer representing the Crown Princely couple of Holland requested that the Associated Press been fined 250,000 euros if photos of their family on vacation in Argentina are published again.
Reuters FILE
“The royal couple asked the court to remove the photographs from its database,” a spokeswoman for the government information service told AFP.
“They also sought a fine of 25,000 euros for every photo published henceforth, up to a maximum of 250,000 euros.”
The Associate Press, which took pictures of Willem-Alexander, his wife Maxima and their 5 year-old daughter Catharina Amalia as they went skiing, issued a statement on Friday. The U.S. news agency said it”understands and respects the tension between freedom of information in a democratic society and an individual’s right to privacy.
“Given the specific facts of the present case, AP strongly believes that the interests of freedom of information far outweigh the desire for privacy. AP believes that the court will fairly decide the outcome on the basis of the facts presented at today’s hearing.”
Crown Prince Willem-Alexander’s lawyer, Henk Jan Boukema, read a statement from the heir to the Dutch throne, where he talked about his youth in the public eye has affected how he wants his three daughters to grow up.
“There was always the chance that you were photographed, and even when there were no photographers, you could never be sure,” the statement reads.
“My wife and I see such photographs as very stressful for our family life. ”
“It provides an intolerable pressure on our children. We want them to participate in everyday life.”
The crown princely couple’s lawyer also discussed Princess Caroline of Monaco and Hannover’s landmark ruling by the European Court which forbids the media from photographing her and her family during private moments
Despite this, the AP’s lawyer, Niels Mulder, argued that the photos of the family were for the media to decide if they were newsworthy, not the courts or the royals. He even said the skiing photos could provide a public debate over whether or not the Dutch royals should be on vacation during an economic downturn.
Mulder also pointed out there were hundreds of photos of the royal family in the AP’s archive, proving that there was a high public interest in the family.
“I don’t like it that you keep referring to the distant past,” Judge Sjoukje Rullmann said. “Times have changed. The media are more intrusive now. What was permissable under Queen Juliana forty years ago is not relevant today.”
“Do you want to say that (the royal family) will always be subjected to photos in public places, that they can only have a private life behind palace doors?”
A final decision would be made on August 28th.
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