Faced with the strong polemic of the clandestine restaurants in Paris, the government bets on transparency to put out the fire. As social networks have been set on fire for days following the documentary aired this past Friday on M6 TV channel about fancy dinners thrown in clandestine restaurants, this Tuesday April 6, 2021 the Secretary of the Interior told AFP “7,345 restaurant have been controlled since October 30” in Paris leading to “around 1,000 patrons” fined.
Of course, this transparent communication is expected to make up for the accusations made by a participant – filmed in secret – in the report released on M6 who said he had met ministers during these fully illegal clandestine dinners because of the health restrictions instated everywhere in France. With this in mind, the Secretary of the Interior added that “300 fines” have been given to the hosts of these illegal parties, “for illegal opening” of their places.
Furthermore, the very Secretary of the Interior has entered the fray to advocate for the other members of the government on that matter. Only “rumors”, Gérald Darmanin said, fighting tooth and nail “there have been no ministers” to these parties.
Clandestine dinners in Paris: ”There have been no ministers”, Darmanin claims
After M6 TV channel broadcasted a story about clandestine dinners in Paris and indiscretion about ministers attending them, pressure has risen on social networks, especially on Twitter. With the hashtag #Onveutlesnoms - #Wewantthenames – anonymous people are looking for people who attended these private dinners for €200 per guest, as all restaurants have been closed since October 28, 2020. The day after the polemic, the Secretary of the Interior denounces rumors and claims no minister attended these illegal dinners. M6 Société des Journalistes - Journalist Society - has issued a statement to advocate for their news and sources that are reliable. [Read more]
