FRESSOZ AND ROIRE v. FRANCE JUDGMENT 18 was intended to contribute to a debate that went beyond the Peugeot chairman as an individual, since his importance, his role, the scale of the industrial dispute and the size of the company concerned were all matters lending themselves to discussion. The published article did not therefore concern Mr Calvet's reputation or rights, but the management of the company he ran. The penalty imposed on them was all the more unjust in that, under the Court of Cassation's case-law, publishing details of a person's income or assets did not constitute an interference with his private life, especially if he exercised public or quasi-public functions. Nor had the penalty been necessary to secure compliance with the duty to preserve confidentiality. In the instant case only the tax officials had been subject to confidentiality obligations. Other people, such as members of the works' council or of Mr Calvet's family, could have disclosed the information about his income. In any event, Mr Fressoz and Mr Roire could not have known that the photocopies of the tax assessments sent to them anonymously had been obtained through a breach of professional confidence, as the national courts themselves had been unable to establish such a breach, despite a two-year investigation. By publishing part of the photocopied documents the applicants had been able to show that their information was true and fulfil their duty as journalists to communicate data that had been verified and proof. Lastly, the reasoning of the Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation was transparently artificial and its pernicious effects on freedom of the press immediate. Mr Calvet had complained solely because his income had been disclosed. The fact that the applicants had been convicted of the purely technical offence of handling photocopies disguised what was really a desire to penalise them for publishing the information, although publication in itself was quite lawful. 47. The Commission agreed in substance with those submissions. 48. The Government maintained that it was the breach of confidence regarding tax matters that had led to the applicants' conviction and that conviction had been necessary to secure effective preservation of confidentiality. It would be unrealistic to hope to secure compliance with a duty to preserve confidentiality if any information, including information that was to remain confidential, could be disclosed with impunity. Restrictions on freedom of expression were to be assessed in the light of the responsibilities and obligations of those concerned when the information was obtained. The addressees of the letter must have been aware that the documents had been obtained unlawfully. Indeed, the second applicant had not disputed knowing that the documents came from a tax file and should therefore have treated them as confidential.