There is outrage in France after filmmaker Roman Polanski was named to head the jury for that country’s equivalent of the Oscars.

The award-winning director has been wanted in the United States for decades after admitting to sex with a minor.  Polanski, who is now 83, fled the US before he could be sentenced in 1978.

The Cesars have defended the choice, praising the director’s body of work. However, France’s Minister for Women’s Rights says she finds it “surprising and shocking that a rape case counts for little in the life of a man.”

Polanski, who is best known for the films Chinatown, Rosemary’s Baby and The Pianist, has French and Polish citizenship.