The Franco-Algerian writer Kamel Daoud, recently awarded the prestigious Goncourt Prize for his novel Hourisis now facing a media and legal storm. During his appearance on the show Hebdo Show from the Al24 channel, lawyer Fatma Zohra Benbraham revealed explosive accusations against the author, attacking his personal life.
Shattering revelations about Kamel Daoud’s past
Maître Benbraham did not mince her words in denouncing what she calls “ the true nature of Kamel Daoud ». « So this man who we adore in France and who we consider to be a great humanist… let me tell you something in my capacity as a lawyer: this man is convicted in Algeria. He is a common law convict “, she said. She specified that this conviction, handed down by the Oran court, concerned domestic violence.
The lawyer forcefully described the details of the facts alleged against the author. “ He hit his wife with a cane. Not just any cane, one with little gold metal dots and a handle shaped like an animal head. He tore out a clump of her hair… Until now, she keeps the marks ».
According to her, after the attack, Kamel Daoud tried to clear his name by rushing to the police station to accuse his wife. “ She was the one who filed a complaint despite the humiliation she suffered. And yet, the prison sentence was overturned on appeal, reduced to a simple fine that he never paid. »
These accusations do not stop there. Maître Benbraham spoke of the precarious living conditions in which Kamel Daoud allegedly installed his daughter from his first marriage. According to the lawyer, Daoud would have taken his children from their mother after the divorce, taking advantage of the fact that she did not have the means to defend herself legally. If his eldest son, now 19, was never claimed, he would have taken his 16-year-old daughter to live with him in France in deplorable conditions.
« He lives in a shabby one-room studio where his wife, his child from his second marriage, and his daughter each sleep in a corner. Sometimes the little one has to sleep in the hallway “, she clarified, emphasizing that this unacceptable situation would have recently pushed him to send the young girl back to Algeria.
Maître Benbraham continued: “ He had first asked to take his daughter back. Now he asks his wife to take her back. He comes to relieve himself of custody of his daughter “. She questions the writer’s true motivations: “ If you took your daughter to live in a paradise called France, just explain to me why you are sending her back to another country, mine, yours, hers too, to live in hell? ».
The novel Hourisa tainted success?
Beyond personal accusations, Houristhe novel which earned Kamel Daoud the prestigious Goncourt Prize, is at the center of a controversy. The work, supposed to be a fiction inspired by the years of violence in Algeria, would, according to Maître Benbraham, take up real elements from the life of Saâda Arban, a former patient of Daoud’s wife. The lawyer claims that Saâda Arban’s medical file would have been used without her consent, an accusation which could constitute a violation of professional secrecy.
Saâda Arban, victim of the Algerian civil war, expressed her indignation after discovering that her personal story had served as the plot for the novel. The precise details described in the book, such as scars and intimate events, leave no doubt, she says, that this is her own life. “ This is a flagrant attack on my dignity and my privacy “, she said.
Ongoing legal proceedings
Two complaints were filed before the Oran court. The first, in the name of the National Organization of Victims of Terrorism, targets the violation of the law on national reconciliation, which prohibits any exploitation of the events of the Algerian civil war. The second, filed by Saâda Arban herself, denounces the unauthorized use of her story and the violation of medical confidentiality.
Reactions and defense
Faced with these accusations, Kamel Daoud chose to remain silent, contenting himself with asserting that “ justice will decide “. His publishing house, Gallimard, for its part, refuted the allegations, calling the accusations “ defamatory » and assuring that the characters and events in the novel were fictitious.
However, these explanations do not convince everyone. Some personalities point out that, according to the rules of this prestigious award, a work must not harm the dignity of a real person, which, according to Daoud’s detractors, would have been violated.
Fatma Zohra Benbraham, for her part, remains firm: “ I only speak with evidence. And today, this evidence shows that he betrayed not only my client, but also the trust of readers and institutions “. A statement full of meaning, which resonates as a call for justice.
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