Eleven weeks after the start of the so-called Mazan rape trial, Gisèle Pélicot has become a true international symbol of the fight against sexual violence. Enough to push the president of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile to pay a vibrant tribute to the one who aspires to change the shame of sides in cases of sexual violence.
On December 20, 2024, the Vaucluse criminal court must deliver its verdict in the so-called Mazan rape trial. A case in which 51 men are accused of having gone to the home of Gisèle Pélicot to profit from her body with the complicity of her husband, Dominique Pélicot. Unlike most trials for sexual violence where the victims are granted closed doors, Gisèle Pélicot chose to make the hearing public.
The opportunity for the whole world to see the courage she showed when confronted with the videos depicting the sexual violence that was caused to her. “In 48 days of hearing, Gisèle Pélicot listened to everything, saw everything, heard everything, without ever showing exasperation or weariness”underlines Anne-Elisabeth Lemoine on the set of C to you who did not hesitate to compare it to a “boxer who falls but gets up” as each audition. “She left the courtroom only once. She was there every day except Monday, when she sees her psychiatrist,” said Noémie Schulz, senior police-justice reporter for France Televisions who attended Mazan's trial.
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Mazan trial: “The fight for all rape victims”
The decision to make the Mazan trial public is not insignificant for Gisèle Pélicot. “She wanted it to be heard, seen and known by everyone,” analyzes Noémie Schulz. And to specify: “This is not trivial. She wants this fight to go beyond her and to be the fight for all women and men victims of rape”. The wishes of the victim of the Mazan rapes seem to have been granted.
Every day, dozens of foreign journalists share the progress of the trial from all over the world. “This name is known worldwide. It is also that of the main accused, Dominique Pélicot, but she said it this week. She introduced herself at this trial as Gisèle Pélicot and said 'My children are ashamed to bear my name. I want in the future that the name Pélicot will be remembered like that of Gisèle Pélicot and that my grandchildren will be proud to wear it.“”
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Mazan trial: “A lesson to the whole world”
Gisèle Pélicot's voice resonates today as far as Latin America, where a politician recently praised her courage and dignity. “I would like to underline the historical importance of French women. And I can't not quote a citizen who teaches a lesson to the whole world: that victims of sexual violence do not have to be ashamed”, declared Karol Cariola, President of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile, in front of her colleagues.
And to underline the courage of Gisèle Pélicot: “It is the attackers who should feel ashamed. I am referring to Gisèle Pélicot, who is an example of courage and dignity for women in Chile and around the world. Let the shame change sides.”
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