Topless bathers defended by French minister from prudish tourists

Three women at a beach in the south of France were told to get dressed. Photo / Dennis Jarvis, Flickr.com

Police have caused outrage, and forced France's Interior Minister to defend topless sunbathers after a group of women were told to cover up while baking on a beach in the south of France.

Two gendarmes approached the group of three women as they sat topless in Sainte-Marie-la-Mer, asking them to put their tops on after a tourist reportedly complained.

A tradition at beaches in France for the last four decades, locals were furious the women were told to get dressed. Topless sunbaking first gained popularity in France during the 1960s with women demanding the same right to tan their upper bodies as men.

France's Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has stepped in and defended the "precious" right of women to sunbathe topless on beaches, saying "it was wrong that the women were warned about their clothing".

"Freedom is something precious. And it is normal that officials can admit their mistakes," he said.

After receiving a wave of criticism, a spokesperson for the French gendarmes patrolling the beach acknowledged their actions had been "clumsy" but said the officers simply wanted to calm the situation.

It is understood there had been no official order to ban topless sunbathing in the town.

"But topless sunbathing is allowed on the beach at Sainte-Marie-la-Mer. It was clumsiness by two gendarmes who had the best intentions," the statement read.

A witness on the beach at the time of the ordeal told local media that when the women were ordered to cover up by the officers, they looked embarrassed while searching around for their bikini tops.

The witness said the two officers – one male and one female – continued their patrol down beach, before talking to another woman who was lying topless nearby.

There is no law against topless sunbathing or swimming on beaches in France, including Sainte-Marie-la-Mer, however the act is prohibited if decided by a specific local law.