September 16, 2024 editorial of the New Anticapitalist Party-Revolutionaries (NPA-R) in France, translated from French
The trial of Dominique Pelicot began on September 2. For years, this family man drugged his wife, Gisèle, and subjected her to rape and sexual violence. Equally shocking is the fact that Dominique Pelicot was joined by fifty other co-defendants who also participated in the rapes. Dominique Pelicot had contacted them via a website known as a meeting place for sexual predators and pedocriminals (those who commit crimes against children, regardless of their psychological profile), a site which was only closed down in June 2024, after 23,000 lawsuits had been initiated.
A crime that reminds us that violence against women remains a fundamental feature of today’s society.
Dominique Pelicot asserted that, on this site, only three men out of ten refused his proposals. What is certain is that none of them denounced him.
Commentators point to the fact that these fifty co-defendants are “ordinary people.” Yes, this trial is a reminder that the overwhelming majority of rapes in society are committed by people close to the victims, often their partners or husbands. The recent cases involving the [so-called “prominent”] Duhamel family also served as a reminder that incest remains a common occurrence in many families…
Between 2020 and 2021, the number of femicides rose by 20%, and studies show that only 0.6% of rapes and attempted rapes result in a conviction. The revelations surrounding Abbé Pierre (a deceased prominent member of the clergy found to have raped and assaulted many women), whose actions the Pope has just acknowledged were known to the Vatican, show the extent to which institutions seek to conceal this ordinary violence.
A crime reflecting the violence of capitalist and patriarchal society
Unfortunately, these sordid crimes come as no surprise in the society we live in. Exploitation is the foundation of capitalism, which relies on anything that can maintain it, and the oppression of women is part of this. In 2024 [in France], women still earn on average 24% less than men. To perpetuate their domination, capitalists use anything that can divide workers: sexism, racism and the most reactionary prejudices are just some examples.
Women’s struggles give hope
Gisèle Pelicot chose not to testify behind closed doors, but to go to the press with her face uncovered: “It’s not for myself that I’m testifying, but for all those women who are subjected to chemical subjugation,” she said. Her lawyer added: “Shame must change sides.” On Saturday, September 14, thousands of women demonstrated in support of Gisèle Pelicot and against violence against women.
This wave of solidarity resonates with the women’s uprising in India against the rape and murder of a young doctor in the hospital where she practiced. It echoes all the women’s mobilizations that have taken place internationally in recent months, against the attempted ban on abortion in Poland, for its legalization in Argentina, not forgetting the revolutionary women’s movement in Iran…
We are resolutely on the side of these women who are fighting to put an end to capitalism, its oppressions, and all the violence that flows from them.
