The continuation of the Mazan rape trial is shrouded in thick fog on Monday, September 16. The hearings were again suspended until the following day because the health of the main accused, Dominique Pelicot, who has been absent for a week, does not appear to have improved.
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Once again, on Monday, September 16, the hearing was suspended for 24 hours at the Criminal Court of Vaucluse, in the trial of the Mazan rapes. A medical examination must take place for the main accused, Dominique Pelicot, whose state of health prevents him from being heard by the court. This expertise should be given at the end of the day. [lundi NDLR]. Until we have this expertise, we cannot position ourselves. “, on the continuation of this trial, declared the president of the court, Roger Arata. The medical examiner and the general practitioner who will examine him will say if he can appear and from when.
Dominique Pelicot, who drugged his wife with anxiolytics to rape her and have her raped in her sleep for ten years by dozens of strangers recruited on the internet, refused to appear in court Monday morning. The day before, he had undergone a scan and is suffering from a ” kidney stone, kidney infection and prostate problem “, specified Roger Arata. His absence calls into question the continuation of this long trial, emblematic of the ravages of chemical submission and sexual violence, where 50 other men are being tried in addition to Dominique Pelicot.
A crucial testimony
” Words fail to express how abnormal the situation we find ourselves in this morning is. There are people whose job it is to ensure that Mr. Pelicot is fit to attend his trial. “, said one of the lawyers for the civil parties, Stéphane Babonneau, at the hearing.
The attorney general told him: regret this situation ” and Maître Béatrice Zavarro, Dominique Pelicot’s lawyer, for her part castigated the lack of medical care for her client. ” We were held hostage for eight days (at the time Mr. Pelicot’s pain appeared, Editor’s note) because if he had been taken care of from the start, we would not be here. ” she explained to the audience. But he still wants to express himself, he will. “, insisted the lawyer.
Although Dominique Pelicot, who documented all the rapes by filming and taking carefully classified photos on his computer, admitted to the facts, he has never explained himself in detail at his trial. His testimony is also crucial for the cases of the other men, aged 26 to 74, tried for rape.
Also readFrance: Mazan rape trial disrupted by absence of accused Dominique Pelicot, still ill
A postponement of this trial, which was closely followed in France and abroad, would cause many complications: “ Everything has to be re-established, a schedule, the availability of the room, the court, etc. And what about those who are in detention? (This is the case for 18 of the 51 accused, Editor’s note) Because at that time, I can assume that there will be requests for release. “, assured Béatrice Zavarro on Thursday.
Shortly before the hearing, Gisèle Pelicot thanked the few 10,000 demonstrators marched across France on Saturday, September 14brandishing his stylized face, to support her: “ Thanks to all of you, I have the strength to fight this fight to the end. “.
Having become the symbol of the issue of attacks committed on people who are victims of chemical submission, this trial is also taken as an example by feminist movements to relaunch the debate on consent. Gisèle Pelicot, who refused to allow this case to be judged behind closed doorshas become a figure in the fight against sexual violence.