On July 17, our three organizations, Emmaüs International, Emmaüs France and the Abbé Pierre Foundation, made public testimonies from several women reporting behavior that can be described as sexual assault or harassment committed by Abbé Pierre between the late 1970s and 2005. These facts have sparked immense indignation within our organizations. They concerned employees, volunteers and volunteers from some of our member organizations, or young women in Abbé Pierre’s personal entourage.
Following these revelations, the Emmaüs movement set up a listening service managed by the Egaé group. This service received numerous testimonies concerning the actions of Abbé Pierre. 17 of them are presented in a summary prepared by the Egaé group, and concern sexual violence committed by Abbé Pierre on minor and adult women. These testimonies are in addition to the 7 made public in July 2024.
In keeping with the transparency approach that the Movement has sought from the beginning out of respect for the victims, the summary as of September 4 of the new testimonies received by the Egaé group is made public today and available on the websites of our three organizations. The violence and extreme seriousness of some of these new testimonies have caused a new shock within our organisations.
Excerpt from the summary of the Egaé report:
“The majority of the testimonies report behaviors that resemble those identified in the first stories transmitted to the Egaé group [en juillet 2024]. These include unwanted touching of the breasts or forced kisses. Several testimonies report serious facts of another nature: repeated sexual contact with a vulnerable person, repeated acts of sexual penetration on a person over 18, as well as sexual remarks, forced kisses and other sexual contact with a child. The facts described took place from the 1950s to the 2000s.
Today we reaffirm our full support for the victims. We salute their courage and thank them for their trust. We believe them and we stand by their side.
The listening and support system set up in July will remain open and available until the end of 2024. All victims are offered an interview with a psychologist specializing in psychotrauma to benefit from listening and to be referred, if necessary, to longer-term support. Those who wish to do so will be received and heard by leaders of the Emmaüs movement.
The Emmaüs movement, since the first testimonies were received, has considered it its duty to make these facts public, to denounce them, to draw lessons from them and to take decisions made essential and even more urgent following these new testimonies.
After bringing together all the members of the offices of the three organizations for a collective decision-making, the Movement made several decisions that will be implemented as soon as possible. They concern the legacy of Abbé Pierre, his place within the organizations and the sustainability of the Movement’s missions:
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The Abbé Pierre Foundation has decided to change its name and has initiated the necessary steps to do so.
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The board of directors of Emmaüs France has decided to propose the removal of the word “founder Abbé Pierre” from the Emmaüs France logo at an extraordinary general meeting, which will be held next December.
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The memorial site dedicated to Abbé-Pierre in Esteville will remain permanently closed, and the future of the centre will be the subject of collective work between its various member organisations over the coming weeks.
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Under the leadership of Emmaüs International, a commission of independent experts will be formed, in particular to understand and explain the dysfunctions that allowed Abbé Pierre to act as he did for more than 50 years.
Our Movement knows what it owes to Abbé Pierre. He inspired our organizations and embodied them for many years. He carried a voice, a momentum, which led to waves of solidarity. The importance of his action constitutes a historical fact.
We are now faced with the unbearable pain he has inflicted. Our decisions are therefore imperative, first out of respect for the victims who have spoken out, but also for the volunteers, employees, companions of the Movement, supporters and donors, whose daily action, so precious and necessary, would be tainted by a profound malaise if nothing changed.
The Emmaus Movement fights all forms of violence. Its place is therefore to denounce all intolerable acts, regardless of the perpetrators.
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Adrien Chaboche, General Delegate of Emmaüs International: “Our Movement is in shock at these revelations, which clearly mark a before and after for our history. It is now up to us to learn all the lessons from them and to plan for the measures that are necessary to continue our fights, particularly in the fight against violence and for equal rights.”
Tarek Daher, General Delegate of Emmaüs France: “We feel deep emotion when thinking of the victims who had the courage to speak out, but also great anger at the extent and gravity of these acts. They deeply offend the founding principles of our Movement. Today, we are doing everything we can to prevent and combat all forms of violence – particularly violence against women – and are continuing our fight against poverty and exclusion, which is more necessary than ever.”
Christophe Robert, General Delegate of the Abbé Pierre Foundation: “Our emotion, our sadness, our anger are strong after these new revelations. Our first thoughts are with the victims, whom we believe and whom we salute for their courage. Now, our challenge is huge: to continue with total determination to fight poor housing, exclusion and inequality while writing a new page in our history, which will involve in particular a change of name for the Foundation.”
Our fights remain essential to respond to the social emergency and we continue more than ever our missions to fight poverty, poor housing, exclusion and indifference. These missions are embodied through the faces of the companions, employees and volunteers of our organizations, who work daily to achieve Emmaüs’ commitment: “Serve the most suffering first” (Universal Manifesto of the Emmaus Movement, 1969).
Contacts presse :
Roman Abreu, Cabinet 2017
06 23 21 36 86
Elizabeth Jacob, Cabinet 2017
06 38 01 30 37
Pauline Reullier, Cabinet 2017
06 70 14 30 17
⬇️ read the second report
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