The trial against Dominique Pelicot and 50 others accused of raping the first’s ex-wife under the influence of sleeping pills,Giselefor ten years, is entering the home stretch with the final interrogations of a long trial which has shaken everyone’s conscience. this Monday Gisèle’s last rapists declared and one of his children.
Of the 51 men accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot, only 14 admitted to having done so. In other words, the majority do not admit it and one of them even assures that he is not a rapist: “No, I don’t consider myself a rapist at all.“.
Even if the one who invited them to do it, Gisèle’s ex-husband, Dominique Pelicothas no doubt: “I’m a rapist like those in this room“But 35 of them deny it, although they were recorded by Pélicot himself, and even downplay the importance of having raped a woman. unconscious.
Dominique Pélicot kept 20,000 photographs and videos in a folder called “Abuse”. “It’s superficial” or “it was an involuntary rape” are some of the surreal explanations given by some defendants at trial. Some apologized, including Dominique Pelicot, for having suffered abuse during childhood, as if that justified having raped Gisèle a hundred times in 10 years.
France was shocked to see that these rapists They were normal men. Among the accused are journalists, firefighters, retirees, married men, single men… some without criminal records. Others were later convicted of child pornography, and one was even accused of raping his own daughter. And another of the accused raped Gisèle while his wife was giving birth.
While they struggled to hide their identities, Gisèle Pelicot asked that the trial be public. She always stood up to send a clear message: “I want these women victims of chemical enslavement don’t be ashamed anymore“Becoming a symbol, she received support in the courtroom from dozens of women who came during the 12 weeks of the trial to accompany her and show her that she is not alone.
