(REUTERS/Manon Cruz)

Shame has switched sides, Mrs. Pelicot

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@fyinews team

28/10/2024

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  1. Until yesterday, I had avoided delving deeper into Gisèle Pelicot’s case. I chose to stick to the general details: since early September, a trial has been underway in Avignon involving a husband who, for nine years, drugged his wife and invited dozens of men to their home to rape her while he recorded the assaults.
  2. In court, Pelicot declared, “I wanted all women who are victims of rape to say, ‘Mrs. Pelicot did it, we can do it too.'”
  3. If she, as a victim, can face this with such courage, then I, as an observer, have no excuse to shy away from the case just because it unsettles me.

by Elena Papadimitriou

“When they rape us, they try to make us feel ashamed, but it’s not us who should feel ashamed—it’s them.” This quote flooded my phone via news alerts in every language imaginable yesterday afternoon. Until then, I had avoided diving too deeply into the Gisèle Pelicot case, sticking to the basics. Since early September, her husband, Dominique Pelicot, had been on trial in Avignon, France. For nine years, he drugged his wife of 50 years, inviting dozens of men into their home, into their bed, to rape her while she was unconscious, as he filmed the assaults.

I had noticed how the case sparked outrage across France, with people protesting in protest. On social media, I saw Gisèle Pelicot’s face as graffiti on walls, alongside slogans like “Shame is switching sides.”

That was all I could take.

“I wanted all women who are victims of rape to say, ‘Mrs. Pelicot did it; we can do it too.'”

Yesterday, Pelicot—who chose an open trial rather than a closed one—stood before the court and said, “I wanted all women who are victims of rape to say, ‘Mrs. Pelicot did it; I can do it too.’

If she, as a victim, can stand with such courage, then I, as an observer, have no right to avoid the case just because it makes my stomach turn. The truth is, the details are unbearable—the hatred and brutality of her 50 rapists and her husband, as described in their testimonies that I’ve been reading carefully over the last few hours, are unbearable.

Disclaimer: You won’t find the descriptions of the crimes or testimonies here (they’re everywhere else). You won’t find voyeurism either—just a look at how this case is becoming a significant reference point, both socially and legally, for rape victims.

This blunt defense strategy by the rapists reignited the debate in France about the need to include the term “consent” in the definition of rape.

I tried to put myself in Pelicot’s position as she listened to those beasts in court denying the rape, claiming they thought the victim was pretending to be asleep, playing a game, or that the husband’s consent was sufficient. Essentially, they were invoking consent as a defense since, under French criminal law, rape is defined as any form of sexual penetration committed through violence, coercion, threat, or surprise. This blunt defense strategy by the rapists has reignited the debate in France about the need to include the concept of “consent” in the legal definition of rape, as recommended by the European directive.

The principle “only yes means yes,” which has divided EU member states and is in effect in countries such as Sweden, Spain, and partly in Greece, rests on the idea that explicit consent must be present for a sexual act not to be considered rape.

If the law required a person to ensure their partner’s consent, there would be no room for a defense for these 50 men.

In Pelicot’s case, Carole Hardouin-Le Goff, a law professor specializing in sexual violence, noted that if the law required individuals to ensure their partner’s consent, there would be no room for a defense for these 50 men—and many others as well.

Gisèle Pelicot, 71, has become a symbol of this cause in her country and across Europe. She articulates something that feels more like a challenge than a sacrifice:

“I do not express anger or hatred, but a desire for this society to change its approach to sexual violence against women.”

Fyi: the trial is set to continue until the end of December, when the verdict will be announced.

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