French government defends topless sunbathing for women

While it may not carry the same weight as the core French values of liberty, equality, and fraternity, the long-standing tradition of topless sunbathing in France was defended by a government official as an essential personal freedom after local police attempted to force women to cover up.

The French Minister of the Interior stepped in to address the controversy over bikini tops being removed, following public outrage over an incident at a beach in Sainte-Marie-la-Mer, located in southern France.

According to a police statement posted on Facebook Tuesday, two officers approached a group of women and asked them to put their bikini tops back on.

The police action quickly garnered attention, prompting a response from Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who took to Twitter to condemn the police request, calling it 'unfounded' to regulate what people wear at the beach.

'Freedom is a valuable right,' he wrote. 'It is only right that the authorities acknowledge their mistake.'

Darmanin was commenting on the police statement, which referred to the officers' actions on August 20 as a 'misstep.'

The police explained that they had been approached by a family who felt uncomfortable with the topless sunbathers, as their children were present, and asked the women to cover up out of consideration for the children.

'There is no local ordinance banning this practice in Sainte-Marie-la-Mer,' the police statement clarified.

'A waste of time,' he remarked.

Topless sunbathing in France occupies a legal gray area, with no national law explicitly permitting it.

Local governments have the discretion to create their own regulations, with some allowing topless or even nude sunbathing in designated areas.

In 2019, the French parliament stated that its position on topless women aligns with changing societal norms and the evolving understanding of modesty, emphasizing that 'the female breast is regarded as an intimate body part, akin to sexual organs.'

Although the rules vary across regions, there was broad criticism of the officers' actions in this particular incident.

'If there's no legal ban, why did two gendarmes tell these women to cover up?' questioned Alain Droval on Facebook. 'As a former officer, I believe it would have been more appropriate to ask the family to move further away.'

Tartine Céline argued that the officers had no right to ask the women to cover up, as they were legally allowed to be topless.

'The family that complained should have moved further away if they felt uncomfortable,' she stated. 'I also believe the authorities have more pressing issues to address, such as the crime problems in our towns and villages, rather than wasting time on these trivial matters.'

In France, those who wish to enjoy topless or nude sunbathing often head to Cap d'Agde Naturist Village, the largest nudist resort in the world.

However, earlier this month, Cap d'Agde became the epicenter of a Covid-19 outbreak, with nearly 150 people testing positive after staying at or visiting the resort's clothing-optional beach in southern France.

Known as the 'Naked City,' Cap d'Agde is the world’s largest clothing-optional beach resort, drawing as many as 40,000 visitors per day during peak season.