Macron thanks Giselle Pellicot for courage and dignity in gang rape trial
French President Emmanuel Macron has paid tribute to Gisele Pellicot for the strength she showed at the trial for the gang rape of her husband and 50 other men.
Describing her as a trailblazer for women, he said that her “dignity and courage impressed and inspired France and the world”.
Her ex-husband Dominic Pellicott, 72, was given a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for aggravated rape after he spent nearly a decade drugging her and raping her while she lay unconscious in bed. Had confessed to recruiting dozens of people for this.
After 50 other men were given lesser sentences, Gisele Pellicot said the trial had been an ordeal, but she believed in a future where women and men could “live in harmony with respect and mutual understanding”.
It was her decision to waive her anonymity and open the trial to the public that brought global attention to the issues of rape and drug-induced sexual assault.
Judges in Avignon, southern France, found all 51 defendants aged 27 to 74 guilty, but a lawyer for Gisele Pellicot said Friday that “no sentence will give her back her ruined life”.
His three children were said to be disappointed that many of the sentences were shorter than the terms requested by prosecutors. Their terms ranged from three to 15 years, instead of the maximum of 18 years sought by prosecutors.
According to reports, 41 people have been immediately sent to jail. Many of those convicted may appeal their sentences.
Dominic Pellicott’s lawyer said he was “somewhat shocked” by his 20-year prison sentence and would decide in the coming days whether to appeal. Judges say he must serve two-thirds of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.
Campaigners against sexual violence stood outside the court throughout the trial and hope it could lead to reforms in France’s rape laws and change the debate over rape culture and drug-induced sexual assault.
“Shamefully change sides” has become one of the slogans of the case and, in a sign of the importance of the trial, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz thanked Gisele Pellicot for giving “a strong voice” to women around the world.
Scholz said, “Shame always falls to the criminal.”
One of her lawyers, Antoine Camus, told France Info radio on Friday that the trial would serve as a “building block” and that by making the proceedings public, Gisele Pellicot was trying to enable society to “get to grips with the issues”. Ask the right questions”.
Yael Braun Pivat, president of France’s National Assembly, said a taboo had been broken: “Thanks to you, the world is no longer the same.”
Former French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal expressed hope that the gang rape trial would send a “shock wave” through the education of every young boy – “because this is where the fight for equality and dignity begins”.
