“Government of Shame”, denounces a sign in Place Saint-Augustin, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, Tuesday, May 24. About 300 people gathered in the evening at the call of the Observatory of gender-based and sexual violence in politics to denounce the presence of Damin Abad in the government. The new Minister of Solidarity is indeed accused of rape by two women. He disputes the facts. “Abad resignation”, however, chanted the demonstrators. They also called for the resignation of the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, targeted by a complaint for rape closed without result.
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For feminist activists, the presence within the government of these two ministers, but also of Éric Dupond-Moretti, the Keeper of the Seals who has often been criticized for sexist remarks, proves that the fight against violence against women is a mirage. “It says a lot about the great cause of the quinquennium to which we had the right for five years and which ultimately is useless”denounces Sophie. “We still don’t have 1 billion euros to fight against sexist and sexual violence.” Magalie thinks that the government discredits the voice of women.
“It’s a misogynist government, quite simply. It’s not a government that wants us well, that’s for sure.”
Magalie, feminist protesterat franceinfo
On a sign, Damien Abad’s face is crossed out with a red line. “Before people are appointed to a ministry, there are systematic surveys on their heritage. Why not do one on their relationship to women and violence?”fumes the ecologist Sandrine Rousseau who regrets the lack of transparency. “In this case, we would have seen that there was a classified investigation and we would have questioned the people of the Republicans who all say that there were insistent rumors about him. The precautionary principle would then have been not to name it.” She believes that Damien Abad should be set aside for the time of an investigation.
The Observatory of sexist and sexual violence in politics, which had transmitted the accusations against Damien Abad to the Republicans and to La République en Marche, also pleads for the creation of a State structure which takes charge of this monitoring work.
“We are volunteers. We do this day and night but it’s not our job. Normally, there should be financial and human resources put on an authority, or even several, which would take care of these questions”
Alice Coffin, environmental adviser to the town hall of Paris and co-founder of the Observatory of sexist and sexual violence in politicsat franceinfo
For Alice Coffin, the High Authority for Transparency in Public Life (HATVP), created after the Cahuzac affair, “could very well take charge of these issues of gender-based and sexual violence and ensure”. The lack of official structure is for her “very revealing” of a certain position of the executive on the question. “Once again, they judge that this is not a subject on which it is worth the Republic to put money. It seems to me that the French Republic owes that to women.