It is a small village in Provence, like many others in Vaucluse, with its medieval ramparts and fortified gates. At the heart of the Comtat Venaissin, the former papal state, Mazan has the uniqueness of housing the former home of the Marquis de Sade, it cannot be invented, at the origin of the notion of sadism with his sulphurous writings.
A peaceful town of 6,400 souls, surrounded by vineyards and orchards, which saw its daily life disrupted by the Pelicot trial. “You will have difficulty finding Mazan residents who want to talk, they have had enough,” warns us the mayor, Louis Bonnet. “This story is not a reflection of the village. When every day in the media you see “The Mazan rapists” repeated, it hurts. This is the Pelicot trial, it is not the trial of the Mazan rapists. Moreover, almost all of the co-defendants were not from Mazan (two out of 50 lived in the village, Editor’s note). »
“The village has nothing to do with it”
A dull anger that we find among those administered who, all the same, want to testify. “I pity Madame Pelicot, she has all my support”, sincerely affirms Annie, the baker. “But when people say: “Mazan is the village of rapists,” that annoys me. The Pelicots weren’t even from here, they were Parisians (the couple moved there in 2013 for their retirement, Editor’s note). And even if they were from here, the village has nothing to do with it. »
Across the street, at the beauty salon, Marilyne remembers Gisèle Pelicot who she had as a client. “A kind, smiling, friendly lady. I never would have imagined what her husband did to her, it’s horrible. » But she also wants to defend the reputation of her town. “This is not Mazan’s trial, let us be left alone. »
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