Paris (AFP)
Plantu, the historical cartoonist of Le Monde, confirmed to AFP on Friday his departure from the daily on March 31, stressing that this departure had "nothing to do" with the controversy linked to that of his colleague Xavier Gorce.
Plantu, confirming an announcement he made the night before on the program "Arrêt sur images", puts an end to a collaboration of almost 50 years with the newspaper, stressing that his departure "was planned for a long time".
"On March 31, I will be replaced by drawings from Cartooning for peace, the association I created with Kofi Annan 15 years ago", and, depending on the news, there will be "an American drawing , Russian, Venezuelan, Algerian, "he told AFP.
The famous cartoonist underlined that this solution had been decided by mutual agreement with the director of Le Monde, Jérôme Fénoglio, and Cartooning for peace: "We have 52 nations represented in Cartooning for Peace", which will make it possible to have every day a designer from a different country, with his own approach, he explained.
"It's been ten years since I asked the director of Le Monde for a youngster to replace me," he said, stressing in passing his full support for his colleague Xavier Gorce.
This cartoonist had announced Wednesday that he would no longer work for the newspaper, judging that "freedom cannot be negotiated", after the daily had qualified as "error" the publication of one of his drawings on incest, which had shocked Internet users.
"I support him passionately, I love his style. We must campaign for the shift (in humor). Seriousness is invading us, it is the cholera of the imagination," said Plantu, resuming a phrase told to him by the recently deceased comedian Guy Bedos.
Ardent activist for freedom of opinion, Jean Plantureux known as "Plantu", who will be 70 years old in March, has sketched the news every day on the front page of the World with a mocking and offbeat pencil.
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