The Right to Honor and Freedom of Expression in the Rosa Peral Case

28 October, 2024
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Privacitat
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Lucas Charnet


In today’s media environment, where fiction intertwines with reality, productions based on real events can cross delicate lines. A recent example is the case of Rosa Peral, who has sued Netflix for the representation of her life in the series El cuerpo en llamas, alleging a violation of her right to honor, privacy, and image. This case raises a crucial question: where is the limit between the creative freedom of producers and the right of individuals to protect their image and honor, especially when they have already been convicted of crimes? In today’s article, we explain.

Protection of Honor and Image in Spanish Legislation

In Spain, Article 18 of the Constitution guarantees fundamental rights to honor, personal and family privacy, and one’s image. These rights are personal in nature and are protected against illegitimate interference. However, Article 20 enshrines freedom of expression and artistic creation, generating a potential conflict between these two rights.

Organic Law 1/1982, of May 5th, regulates this balance and establishes limits to the protection of honor and image, especially in the case of public figures or people who have gained notoriety. For instance, in the case of Rosa Peral, convicted of murder and having gained media attention, jurisprudence indicates that public figures enjoy less protection of their privacy, as they have contributed to their own exposure. Nevertheless, this reduced protection does not allow for unlimited intrusions, especially when they affect their personal life unjustifiably.

The aforementioned Organic Law 1/1982 also recognizes that, although public notoriety diminishes the expectation of privacy, there still exists the right for intimate aspects not related to the person’s public relevance to remain undisclosed. Thus, public figures must be protected in regard to those private aspects of their lives that have not been exposed to public scrutiny.

Fiction vs. Reality in the Representation of Public Figures

By becoming a public figure, the right to privacy and personal image becomes more limited compared to that of private citizens. Public notoriety, usually the result of actions that expose a person to public opinion, such as interviews or documentaries, reduces their expectation of privacy. In the case of Rosa Peral, her two firm and public conviction sentences, along with her participation in a previous Netflix documentary about her life, have contributed to this exposure, limiting her ability to claim violations of her privacy rights.

However, this limitation depends on the genre of the work. Fiction based on real events, like El cuerpo en llamas, allows for a greater degree of artistic invention, as viewers assume that although some elements are based on real events, others may have been dramatized, invented, or altered for narrative purposes. This means that the margin for creative freedom is broader, as long as certain ethical limits, such as the unjustified representation of private details, are not violated.

On the other hand, in works with an informative vocation, such as journalistic documentaries, the approach is different. These productions are subject to a much stricter standard of truthfulness, as their purpose is to inform, not to create fiction. In these cases, the responsibility to respect proven facts and the legal limits on privacy and personal image is greater. Therefore, works that present facts, such as Crims, require greater rigor to avoid rights violations, while fiction, although more flexible, must also avoid overstepping in the exposure of private aspects without justification.

The Fariña Case: An Important Precedent

The Fariña case is an important precedent in the protection of the rights to privacy and honor, even when it comes to public figures. Laureano Oubiña, a well-known Galician drug trafficker, filed a lawsuit against Atresmedia, Netflix, and the production company Bambú for the representation of his life in the series Fariña. He claimed that the series violated his rights by showing scenes that, according to him, affected his honor and privacy. Although the Provincial Court of Pontevedra dismissed most of the lawsuit, it partially accepted his appeal, ordering the removal of an explicit non-consensual sexual scene.

This decision is significant because it reaffirms that, even though a person has gained public notoriety and their life is of media interest, their right to protect certain intimate aspects of their private life must remain intact. The Court emphasized that Oubiña, despite his fame, had not publicly exposed this part of his private life, which justified the conviction of the producers for violating his privacy in these particular scenes.

This case reflects the limits of creative freedom in fictions based on real events, emphasizing that public notoriety does not exempt creators from respecting certain fundamental rights.

Conclusion

The balance between freedom of expression and the rights to honor and personal image is a complex issue that varies depending on the nature of the work and the context in which it is presented. In the case of public figures, like Rosa Peral, the law offers more flexibility for artistic creation, as long as the most intimate aspects of their private life are respected. Spanish jurisprudence has pointed out that the status of a public figure does not imply a total loss of protection of these fundamental rights.

At MES Advocats, we offer comprehensive and specialized advice on the protection of the right to honor, privacy, and personal image, both for public figures and individuals. Our legal team provides personalized support to ensure your rights are respected in any media or artistic context. If you need more information on how to protect your image or are interested in a quote, do not hesitate to contact us in this link.

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