“It started with a simple slap.” The voice of Caroline, 42 years old, does not tremble. This resident of Arbin in Savoie was hit by her partner from the age of 23 to 25. An episode in her life which inspired her to create a sequel to photos which denounce this domestic violence. Photos that the Haute-Savoie prefecture chose for its communication campaign, launched this Monday, November 25, for the international day against violence against women. She testified on France Bleu Pays de Savoie.
“He hit my head against the radiator”
After the first act of violence from her companion, it only got worse, says the professional caregiver. “He hit my head against the radiator, he strangled me, locked me in a room”she lists. This violence is also psychological. The father of her two children makes her feel guilty, telling her each time that it's the last time. These classic manipulation mechanisms in this type of situation work on them for very long months. “I told myself it’s my fault”remembers Caroline. She is ashamed and doesn't dare talk about it right away, hiding her bruises. “The blows were not visible, he rarely hit me in the face”describes the forty-year-old. She loses weight, loses her smile.
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No emergency accommodation
And then, the electro-shock comes from the presence of his children. Even while trying to protect them, the two little ones perceive the psychological and physical violence between their two parents. One day the eldest, who was 3 at the time, stood between his father and mother. “There he pushed my son against the wall. When I saw that, I felt superhuman and I had the strength to push him away and leave the house with my two children.” We are in the mid-2000s, emergency accommodation for battered women is very rare. “I had no choice but to return to my parents” Caroline testifies. They are there to support her, and she files a complaint. Her ex-companion was tried, he received a suspended prison sentence, a fine and a ban on approaching her. “But he kept the right to see my children one weekend every two weeks”she emphasizes.
More than 15 years later, she came out and said “be at peace with your past”. The caregiver sees women victims of domestic violence in her job and she wants to help them. SO this communication campaign is obvious to her. “Today this cause speaks to me as a woman, as a caregiver but also as a mother.” These photos will be displayed in particular in medical and paramedical offices, as well as the prefecture's premises.
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According to the Interministerial Mission for the Protection of Women, every year at least 320,000 women aged 18 to 74 are victims of violence at the hands of their spouse or ex-spouse.
Barely a quarter of them file a complaint. And of the cases that go to court, half are dismissed.
