“The secret weapon of rapists”: France 2 will broadcast on January 21 a documentary intended to be “of public utility” on chemical submission, a scourge highlighted by the Mazan trial and ardently fought by Gisèle Pelicot's daughter, Caroline Darian .
The affair, which captivated the media around the world, serves as the central theme of “Chemical submission: so that the shame changes sides”, narrated by Caroline Darian (her pen name) and produced by investigative journalist Linda Bendali. The public channel announced Monday that it would be scheduled for January 21 at 9:10 p.m.
This 90-minute choral film, followed by a debate moderated by Carole Gaessler, also features six other victims. They were raped after being drugged without their knowledge, like Gisèle Pelicot, delivered by her husband to dozens of men recruited on the internet over a decade.
Amnesia drugs
Zoé no longer remembers that night of the Music Festival in 2006 when she was raped at the age of 15. Céline knows her attacker, her boss at the time, but suffers, like many victims, from amnesia. Rénald remembers the hours of torture inflicted by the executioner who offered him a drink 30 years ago. Raped by her father, Lilwenn, 16, was able to benefit from hair samples proving that she was regularly drugged…
All of them underwent “a system”, “a full-fledged modus operandi” which remained under the radar for a long time, as explained by the producer and co-author of the documentary, Andrea Rawlins-Gaston, during a press conference in December, eight days before the conviction of Dominique Pelicot and 50 other men.
“Finally, we lift the veil on a social fact which is very largely underestimated and much more widespread in France than we think,” added Caroline Darian, praising a “public utility documentary” on a phenomenon difficult to quantify.
“Help victims who are unaware”
Chemical subjugation refers to “the administration of a psychoactive substance to a person, without their knowledge or under duress, with the aim of committing an offense or crime, such as theft, sexual assault, rape …”, according to the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM).
In 2022, suspicious reports of chemical submission jumped by 69% over one year, to 1,229, according to the ANSM, which announced on December 20 that it was working on measures to reduce the risk of drug diversion. But this data represents only the tip of the iceberg.
The documentary should thus make it possible to “reach out to more people, raise greater awareness and even help victims who, today, are either unaware or do not have the courage to seek a form of care and recognition of their victim status,” according to Caroline Darian.
“We need a real Marshall plan”
The co-founder of the M'endors pas association is herself convinced of having been drugged and raped by her father, who photographed her naked and unconscious, in a position proving, according to her, that she was “sedated” . Training of health professionals, better care of victims, systematization of hair sampling to detect poisonings… There are numerous avenues of action to provide “a historic response to a historic trial”, according to her.
The forty-year-old is currently working with MoDem MP Sandrine Josso, at the head of a mission commissioned by the government on chemical submission.
“Our politicians must really take up the subject. The answers are multidisciplinary” and do not belong only to the Ministry of Justice, Health or Education, argues Caroline Darian. “If we really want to move the lines in terms of support and care, or even detection of victims, we need a real Marshall plan,” she insists.
Determined to continue “the fight of (her) life”, Caroline Darian hopes to raise funds for her association, “launch a major awareness campaign” or even “launch don't fall asleep in England”, where her book “And I stopped calling you dad” will be released “in January”, published in 2022. “My roadmap is as long as an arm”, she assures.
