French Sexual Harassment Law Expected Imminentley

Image from Liberation.fr

In her new role as Minister for Justice, Christiane Taubira has announced that there will soon be a new law created against sexual harassment. At present, there is no law against sexual harassment in France as it was abolished earlier in May. The previous law, dating back to 1992,  was abolished as it was considered to be “too vague” (trop flou) and it was feared that there was “the possibility of condemning people who are simply flirting” (la possibilité de condamner de simples dragueurs).  Anyone convicted of sexual harassment could be punished with “up to a year in prison and fined up to 15,000 euros” (d’un an d’emprisonnement et de 15 000 euros d’amende).

The end of this law triggered protest amongst women’s rights groups who saw the potential for victims of sexual harassment to go unheard and without justice. The Association européenne contre les Violences faites aux Femmes au Travail [AVFT] (European Association against Workplace Violence against Women) launched a campaign to have the law reinstated, including a letter petitioning the incoming President François Hollande.

This week, the new Minister for Justice reacted to what she sees as,  “a completely intolerable legal loophole ” (C’est un vide juridique absolument insupportable). This commitment was made by Hollande during his campaign, on the exact same day that the law was abolished [4th May 2012]. The law was originally abolished because it was feared that it would be too easy to wrongly convict people of sexual harassment. It is hoped that this new law will be better structured as to protect victims, but also to prevent people from being wrongly imprisoned or fined.

For more information, read about the law’s abolition here and what Christiane Taubira had to say on the new law here.

Recommended Reads:

17/05/2012: Influential French Women: Christiane Taubira

27/03/2012: If Hollande becomes President, will it benefit the women of France?

16/05/2012: Hollande Delivers on Equality Promise

“#ididnotreport” Crosses the Channel

*Trigger Warning*

Image from http://pasdejusticepasdepaix.wordpress.com/les-visuels/

On Twitter, the hashtag #ididnotreport began as a voice for rape victims (both male and female) to give their testimonies of unreported rape and sexual assault. The point being to highlight the number of unreported rapes and sexual assaults in the UK and worldwide.

According to Le Monde, the hashtag #jenaipasportéplainte (#ididnotreport ‘s French counterpart) was started on Twitter on the 22nd of March by the movement Femmes en Résistance. The hastag is accompanied by a wordpress blog entitled “pasdejusticepasdepaix” (No justice, no peace) which provides information on rapes and conviction rates in France.

Pasdejusticepasdepaix has documented some of the testimonies which have appeared on Twitter under #jenaipasportéplainte. What can be read is very harrowing, but shows, very sadly, the common experiences of rape and sexual assault victims who felt that they could not report what had happened because of fear or a sense of helplessness. It is estimated that of the rapes and sexual assaults that are committed in France each year, only 8% of victims report the assault or rape.

Pasdejusticepasdepaix has also begun a petition to raise awareness of the low report rate and conviction rates of rapes in France. The manifesto is thus, “We demand a broad reflection upon the running of our judicial system, so that it finally begins to abandon its patriarchal reactions, at all levels and to consider all means of protecting the victims of sexual violence: the children, women and men who go through hell on a daily basis.” (Nous demandons l’ouverture d’une vaste réflexion sur le fonctionnement de notre système judiciaire  pour qu’il commence, enfin, à tous les niveaux, à abandonner ses réflexes patriarcaux, et à envisager tous les moyens nécessaires pour protéger les victimes de violences sexuelles, enfants, femmes et hommes qui subissent l’enfer au quotidien.)

As of the 26th of March, there have been 1,406  on the petition.

Read Pasdejusticepasdepaix here, the petition here and the Le Monde article here.