Sex tourism row

The book, called "The Bad Life," was written four years ago before Frederic Mitterand joined the government. At the time it attracted little attention.

But it's back in the news again ever since the minister spoke out in defense of director Roman Polanski who was arrested in Switzerland recently on a decades-old sex charge.

Polanski, who has dual French and Polish nationality, faces deportation to the US for having sex with an underage girl in 1977.

Mitterrand, a nephew of former French President Francois Mitterrand, called Polanski's arrest in Switzerland "horrific." He said the US had shown a "frightening side" in its persecution of the Oscar-winning filmmaker.

His comments have sparked outrage in France. He's been accused of being a pedophile.

"All these rituals of the market for youths, the slave market excited me enormously … the abundance of very attractive and immediately available young boys put me in a state of desire that I no longer have a need to brake or dim," Mitterrand wrote in the 2005 book.

He wrote that his attraction to young male prostitutes continued even though he was aware of "the sordid details of this traffic."

Mitterrand admits prostitution, denies pedophilia

Mitterrand has denied being a pedophile, saying that the term "boys" was misleading and did not necessarily indicate that they were minors.

France considers itself to be at the forefront of the fight against sex tourism and human trafficking. An aide to French President Nicolas Sarkozy defended Mitterrand, who joined the cabinet in June 2009.

"French political debate sometimes takes on a pathetic form. It's excessive and quite undignified," Henri Guaino told French television.

"When there is a controversy as pathetic as this, with so much delay, I don't think there should be such drastic consequences," Guaino added, dismissing the idea that Mitterrand should step down over the scandal.

However, the controversy and the impression that Mitterrand was defending sex tourism has riled the opposition.

The far-rightwing National Front party has called for the minister to resign, saying the book left an "indelible stain on the government."

The Socialist Party has also urged Mitterand to quit.

"As a minister of culture he [Mitterrand] has drawn attention to himself by defending a film maker accused of raping a child and he has written a book where he said he took advantage of sexual tourism. To say the least, I find it shocking," party spokesman Benoit Hamon told news agency Reuters.

"At a time when France is engaged with Thailand to fight against the curse of sex tourism, here we have a government minister who himself explains that he is a consumer," he said.

ai/AFP/dpa/Reuters
Editor: Nancy Isenson