Here you can view the list of those who have signed a petition protesting about Roman Polanski’s arrest. Part of the petition states the following:
Filmmakers in France, in Europe, in the United States and around the world are dismayed by this decision. It seems inadmissible to them that an international cultural event, paying homage to one of the greatest contemporary filmmakers, is used by the police to apprehend him.
By their extraterritorial nature, film festivals the world over have always permitted works to be shown and for filmmakers to present them freely and safely, even when certain States opposed this.
The arrest of Roman Polanski in a neutral country, where he assumed he could travel without hindrance, undermines this tradition: it opens the way for actions of which no one can know the effects.
Extraterritorial nature?
Do these individuals really think film festivals have a form of diplomatic immunity extending to attendees? Presumably, this is a wider extension of the rule that artists should be given special dispensation when they cross the line into illegality.
Do they really think that the arrest of an individual who had unlawful sex with a minor will have long-lasting effects on the freedom of expression at film festivals? (In fact, that appears to arise from the film community itself).
Why do they think Switzerland being a neutral country has any bearing on the matter? The neutrality of Switzerland is an entirely separate issue from its extradition arrangements with other countries. The Swiss government website makes it plain they have signed a number of extradition treaties with other countries, and Switzerland has a general position that extradition can be granted even in the absence of a treaty with a particular country. Perhaps Polanski should have been more careful or less arrogant.
More, importantly, why are so many of the signatories men?
