Mazan rapes: “Not all men”, consent, somnophilia… the terms to better understand this extraordinary trial

The trial that opened on September 2, 2024 places the notion of consent at the center of the case. EPA – GUILLAUME HORCAJUELO

The trial of the Mazan rapes that opened in Avignon on September 2, places many terms such as consent or chemical submission at the center of the public debate. Focus on some of them in order to better understand the case. 

About fifty men have been on trial in Avignon since September 2 as part of the Mazan rape trial. Dominique Pelicot admitted to having drugged his wife Gisèle without her knowledge for ten years, in order to welcome men into their home to rape her. This trial highlights many terms and subjects, placed at the heart of the case, as our colleagues at Ouest France have recounted.

Rape

The concept of rape entered the Penal Code in 1791, but it was not defined and truly punished until the end of the 1970s. In 1978, the debate sparked by the trial of the rapists of Anne Tonglet and Araceli Castellano, made public at the request of Gisèle Halimi, contributed to the entry into force of a new law on rape in 1980.

Since that date, Article 222-23 of the Penal Code defines it as “any act of sexual penetration, of whatever nature whatever it may be, or any oral-genital act committed on the person of another or on the person of the perpetrator by violence, constraint, threat or surprise”. 

But France is potentially moving towards a redefinition of rape in the penal code in order to include the notion of consent. The idea initially put forward by President Emmanuel Macron in March 2024 was supported by Justice Minister Didier Migaud, who declared his support for it at the end of September. ~60/p>

The notion of consent ~60/h2>

This term is at the heart of the trial because the victim was asleep at the time of the events. Consent, which in this context is sexual, is defined in Le Robert as “acquiescence given to a project; a decision not to oppose it". 

This notion does not seem to make sense to some of the accused, however, who completely challenge this notion in their testimonies. "I am called a rapist just because there is this word non-consent. Pelicot manipulated me and I fell into his trap" said Simone M. Or: "From the beginning to the end of the meeting, nothing shocked me. I thought she was pretending to be asleep”, said Eric D.

Some of the defendants' lawyers had also highlighted the fact that their clients thought they were participating in the games of a libertine couple and were unaware that Gisèle Pelicot was not consenting. To which she had replied:  "There is no 'rape and rape'. Rape is rape". 

Somnophilia

This term came up during the speeches. Somnophilia consists of being sexually attracted to someone who is unconscious or asleep. This is something that was notably highlighted by Jérôme V., one of the accused who went to the Pelicot home six times. Questioned on Wednesday, October 2, the man did not deny his attraction to “somnophilia“, reports franceinfo. Another defendant, Thierry Po., said he learned the word at the trial before confessing that he had already committed the same acts on unconscious women, without knowing that it was rape. He then announced he wanted to start an association to “make men like me understand that consent is needed“.

Chemical submission

“In the collective unconscious, chemical submission is limited to a glass of alcohol with GHB in a bar. In reality, it is much more than that” had declared on KonbiniGisèle Pelicot's daughter, Caroline Darian, who heads the association M'endors pas, Stop soumission chimique. On the portal of his association's website, here is the definition given:  "Chemical submission refers to the administration of one or more psychoactive substances without the knowledge of the victims or under threat, for criminal or tortious purposes".  

Le procès des viols de Mazan s’est ouvert hier à Avignon. 51 hommes seront jugés pour viols aggravés sur la femme de l’un d’entre eux, droguée par son mari et livrée à des dizaines d’inconnus durant des années. Leur fille nous avait raconté le calvaire subi par sa mère. pic.twitter.com/ak5pFdJKJE

— Konbini news (@konbininews) September 3, 2024

The 2021 investigation report by the French National Agency for the Safety of Medicines (ANSM) highlights that it is most often medications that are used in the context of chemical submission, rather than drugs. This is the case in the Pelicot affair, where Gisèle was put to sleep with sleeping pills and anxiolytics, hidden in her food. This story highlights chemical submission in the private sphere, one of the demands of the association that would like to make it clear that it is not limited to the world of the night.

The closed session

A trial held behind closed doors means that it is not public, so no outsider can attend. This term was much discussed during the trial concerning the broadcasting of the rape videos. From the beginning of the trial, the victim, Dominique Pelicot, wanted them to be viewed by the public in order to open the debate and raise awareness. "Our decision has the power to change things, it is in the courtrooms that history is made“, declared Gisèle Pelicot's second lawyer, Me Antoine Camus, to BFMTV. 

On September 20, the President of the Court had decided that the viewing of the videos of the rapes would be done behind closed doors on the pretext that the "images were shocking and indecent". A decision that has just been lifted this Friday, October 4 following the request of Gisèle Pelicot and her lawyers, reports Midi Libre. The victim had expressed her wish that "shame changes sides". 

The international scope  

Several demonstrations were organized across France in support of Gisèle Pelicot. A support that ended up going beyond borders. With the story of the case having resonated around the world, the Australian association Older Women's Network has organized a fundraiser in support of the woman, according to Le Parisien. "When we saw that Gisèle had chosen to give up her anonymity and expose these absolutely atrocious crimes, we said to ourselves: ’Wow, she is a champion,’”, said Yumi Lee, president of the association. 

2 class=”txt-int”>The "#Not all men"

This hashtag, which has been around for several years, appeared many times on social media at the time of the opening of the trial. Relayed in particular on X and TikTok, the "#Not all men" ("Pas tous les hommes", in French), underlines the idea that not all men are guilty, and in the context of this case, not all rapists. What was striking about this trial at the outset was that among the 51 accused, all the male profiles were represented, thus deconstructing the collective imagination of a rapist with a typical profile.

This expression is denounced by feminist movements because it ends up diverting the debate and making the victim invisible, by focusing attention on the accused.

In an op-ed in theWorld, the philosopher Camille Froidevaux-Metterie wrote: “Let those who are not ashamed and feel guilty of nothing understand that their individual innocence is not an argument. Yes, all men are guilty: guilty of refusing to educate themselves to understand the systemic dimension of sexual violence, guilty of not taking part in our fights, guilty of not being ashamed, of having remained, until now, ordinary indifferent people.”