The LFI deputy, convicted of domestic violence, spoke for the first time to “La Voix du Nord”, excluding resigning from the Assembly.
SourceAFP
© MAGALI COHEN / Hans Lucas / Hans Lucas via AFP
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HASfter his four-month suspended prison sentence for “violence” on his wife, the former number two of La France insoumise Adrien Quatennens gave an interview to The voice of the North. “I endured an unprecedented media lynching in silence”, he declared for his first speech since his withdrawal from the coordination of LFI, in September 2022. He ruled out resigning from his post as deputy “Resigning after being sentenced for an act that I have recognized would set a dangerous precedent and open the door to all political manipulations of private life”, he argued.
In the wake of his conviction, the elected official was suspended for “a period of four months” from the group of LFI deputies, until April 13, 2023. A return will then only be possible if he undertakes to “follow a course on accountability on violence against women”. “I will respect the collective decision of the group,” he reacted. “But mine belongs to me and it’s taken: I’ve paid quite enough on all counts. I will not give in”, adds the one who intends to “honor” his mandate.
“We would have pronounced the expulsion”, assures Olivier Faure
The decision of the LFI group surprised several parliamentarians from Nupes, the left-wing alliance the Assembly: the leader of the ecologist deputies Cyrielle Chatelain thus clearly demanded her resignation. Sandrine Rousseau believes for her part that “a deputy convicted of domestic violence cannot sit”. “For a sanction of this nature, we would have pronounced the expulsion”, added the first secretary of the PS Olivier Faure, when the communist Sébastien Jumel wondered: “Is he in a position to defend the common cause which is the ours, including the feminist cause? »
On the side of the Insoumis, it is estimated that the suspension measure is “a firm decision”. “It is not the power of other groups” to comment on this issue, noted LFI MP Antoine Léaument. The group explained that it had tried to reconcile “the court decision taken after investigation, the feminist principle of taking women’s voices seriously, a desire for gradation of sanctions” and the fact that “Adrien Quatennens is already withdrawn from his parliamentary activity for three months”.READ ALSO“The split is recorded”: the new management of LFI heckled
“The investigation concluded what I had recognized”
Judged in appearance on prior admission of guilt (CRPC or “plea-guilty”), the deputy was present during the approval by a judge of his sentence, which he had previously accepted on a proposal from the prosecution. His wife, with whom he is engaged in conflicting divorce proceedings, also attended the hearing.
Mr. Quatennens is sentenced for “violence without incapacity committed by spouse” between October and December 2021, as well as for “regular and malicious sending of messages” to his wife between August and September 2022. He will have to pay 2,000 euros in damages . “The investigation concluded what I had recognized: a slap given in the context of an argument, more than a year ago and never reproduced, and the sending of too many romantic text messages following a divorce announcement. misunderstood,” said Quatennens. The approval hearing, which was held behind closed doors, did not, however, reveal the details of the facts.
The rapid return of Mr. Quatennens to the political arena had already been undermined by new accusations at the end of November from his wife, evoking “physical and psychological violence” exerted for “several years”. He replied on Tuesday by saying that she had “openly threatened” him to “destroy (his) political commitment” if he did not respond favorably to his requests for divorce. ” Still […] I am blackmailed by the complaint or the media. »READ ALSOCoignard – The Quatennens affair, ball and chain of LFI
“I know we wouldn’t be here if I had denied it like everyone else does. But I don’t regret it. Especially if it can usefully serve the cause of the fight against violence against women,” he insisted. “I simply discovered at 32 that in France, when you put one knee on the ground, you recognize a fault […] the relentlessness does not cease,” he added. “The message sent has the merit of clarity: deny! »
The elected official, who arrived in court through a back door, avoiding journalists and activists from the #NousToutes collective, believes he is the victim of a “media lynching” and a “political” coup intended to “shoot him down”. “Several concordant sources tell me that this was directly orchestrated from the Ministry of the Interior. I am not in a position to affirm it myself today,” he said.READ ALSOFor Mélenchon, Quatennens is the victim of “political slaps”