“I advise you, first of all, to go to this chat, they are trained police and gendarmes, volunteers, who will respond to you. They will help you in your process and can tell you which police station to go to.”explain calmly Cécile (name has been changed at her request). Over the phone, the incest victim decides to file a complaint, several years after the acts committed by her father. Take note of the contact information for the digital victim support platform that the listener of the Viols Femmes Informations free hotline has just provided (0800-05-95-95).
The latter continues: “When they listen to you, there may be questions that seem to challenge your story, you should be prepared for them. And at the end of the hearing you will be tired, but it is very important to reread the record carefully to make sure it reflects what you said. »
A few more sentences and the interview comes to an end. It must have lasted forty-five minutes. Cécile concludes with her soothing voice: “Take some time to reward yourself for your calling, it’s nothing, what you just did. » She takes a moment herself after hanging up and breathes deeply. “She touched methe young woman whispers. He gave many details, said many things. “I’m going to take a little break.”He said as he left his work station.
Around him, in the room decorated with large windows that let in the light, this Wednesday in November, four other helpline employees are sitting behind their screen. Each one has a large spiral notebook in front of them, to write down what is said on the other end of the phone. Some are online, others transcribe their notes on the computer or fill out the standard grid that allows, at a glance, to have an idea of each situation: the date of the call, the facts, the context, the medical and police procedures, etc. . .
“It’s the attackers’ fault”
From Monday to Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., around fifteen professionals take turns at this location located at 13my district of Paris. Since its launch on March 8, 1986, the free assistance service has received 80,000 “first calls.” This is without counting the frequent reminders. The ritual is invariable. The listener responds with a “Information about raped women, hello”. By saying the word rape immediately, “the most difficult to pronounce”, “sends the message that serious violence can be said and heard here”according to Sophie Lascombes, project director of the Feminist Collective Against Rape (CFCV), the association behind the helpline, which has managed it since its creation. From one office to another the same expressions resonate: “You were right to call us.”, “you are in the right place”, “What you told me is rape and is punishable by law”, “Rape is the fault of the aggressors, it is not the fault of the victims”…
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