Abbé Pierre, who died in 2007, has been accused by several women of sexual assault, but according to Emmaüs, they may not be the only victims.
In a report published on Wednesday, July 17, seven women testify against Abbot stone. According to the newspaper The crossthey accuse the priest who died in 2007 of inappropriate gestures, sexist remarks, solicitations and sexual assaults committed by the man who was for a long time one of the French people’s favorite personalities. One of them said she was a minor at the time of the events.
“Everything suggests that, given the length of time the events took place, there may indeed be other victims,” he assured on Thursday franceinfo the general delegate of Emmaüs International, Adrien Chaboche. Remarks also supported by Christophe Robert, general delegate of the Abbé-Pierre Foundation, on France 2 : “What the firm that carried out this work of listening to the victims tells us is that when we have such a span of time, from the end of the 1970s to 2005, that means that there are probably others. The proportions are difficult to evaluate.”
A listening and testimony collection system has then been set up for “people who could also have been victims of similar events”. They will be able to be heard anonymously. New testimonies could therefore still emerge.
A known behavior?
The investigation report contains excerpts from direct and non-direct testimonies over eight pages. The stories span from the end of the 1970s to 2005. Of the seven women who testified anonymously, six reported alleged facts that could be described as sexual assault. The last one denounced facts that were similar to sexist remarks. The report reveals a man of the Church who “does not stop himself from trying to satisfy his urges, feeling authorized to commit acts that were reprehensible by the law of the time”. “I am used to defending myself, but this time, it was God. What do you do when it is God who does this to you?” asks one of the women who claims to be a victim.
According to testimonies in the report, this behavior was known within certain structures founded by Abbé Pierre. One employee in particular assured that women were advised never to go see him alone.
Damning stories
It was in June 2023 that a first woman contacted Emmaüs officials. She reported having been sexually assaulted by Abbé Pierre in the early 1980s. He allegedly “inserted his tongue into (her) mouth in a brutal and totally unexpected way” after a trip to Italy. After this first testimony, Emmaüs decided to mandate the Egaé firm to conduct an investigation into the matter. Twelve interviews were conducted, resulting in the report made public on Wednesday. A second alleged victim also explained that she had been groped on the chest in a hotel room.
“We salute the courage of the people who have testified and allowed, through their words, to bring these realities to light,” emphasize the leaders of Emmaüs France, Emmaüs International and the Abbé-Pierre Foundation, in a press release relayed on their website. “We believe them, we know that these intolerable acts have left their mark and we stand by their side,” they added.