Reporter in hot water for calling Spain´s military mothers ´prostitutes´

Spanish Defense Minister José Bono asked for the prosecution of a journalist for allegedly suggesting that mothers of enlisted service men practice prostitution. Bono told members of the Army Ground Forces Superior Council during a private meeting that "as a citizen and defense minister" he filed the complaint with an investigative judge against reporter Iu Forn for penning the alleged calumnious column in the Catalonia daily Avui.

In an answer to a military officer´s threat that the Army may have to intervene if Catalonia is given greater autonomy, Forn wrote a Jan. 12 column entitled "A guide for a good coup plotter" in which he dished out tips for would-be rebels who want to invade the region.

"Remember that the civil ordinance in Barcelona on its face prohibits the practice of prostitution. Therefore, it´s better that you [the military] come without your mothers," Forn wrote.

Although Forn later apologize for the remarks, Bono said it wasn´t enough. The defense minister explained that the columnist may have violated the Spanish Penal Code which protects the military from "injurious attacks." If convicted, Forn could face between one year and 18 months in prison.

UPDATE JAN 28 -- The Spanish judge investigating Bono´s charges dismissed the complaint ruling that the column was "irony" and "satirical," and wasn´t meant to insult the military as an institution because it was address to those who want to break the law in the first place.