Rape complainants are often accused of wanting to profit from their allegations against celebrities. The young woman who accuses Ary Abittan of rape is also attacked in these terms. But what do we gain by filing a rape complaint?
Actor Ary Abittan, known to the general public for his role in the film series What did we do to the good Lord, has just been indicted for rape. Very little is known of the one who accuses her: her age, 23, and her profession, an employee of a digital platform. We also learned that his links with the actor were a priori regular. But it does not matter that we only know these few elements about the one who accuses Ary Abittan of rape: now, she is targeted on social networks and in certain media. Indeed, in the wake of the revelation of the case, comments have poured in from all sides. Relatives of the actor, including columnist Bernard Montiel, defend him and consider the accusations implausible. As for Internet users, they accuse en masse the alleged victim of wanting to create notoriety, but also to earn money thanks to his accusations.
Recall that initially, the young woman wanted to file a simple handrail, telling the police not to want to harm the career of Arry Abittan. Not really the basis of an elaborate and profitable plan. A more global context element, a large-scale study, cited by Noémie Renard in her book Ending the culture of rape, false accusations of rape across Europe are between 2% and 6%. A very low rate, which proves that these cases are extremely rare. Finally, women who file a complaint after rape or sexual assault, including against famous men, do not earn much … or even lose a lot.
Accusing a man of rape, the risk of double punishment
Filing a rape complaint is often an obstacle course. Once you put words into what happened, you have to walk through the door of a police station and tell your story several times to people not always trained to welcome this word. With the hashtag Double Peine in the fall of 2021, women highlighted the difficulties encountered systemically. Victims of rape or sexual assault, they say they were made to feel guilty about their outfit or their state of intoxication, dissuaded from filing a complaint on the pretext that it was useless or problematic for the accused… Once the complaint was filed , and if a legal procedure is launched, the difficulties continue, in particular because such a step is expensive.
Questioned by Liberation at the moment of the Now On Act movement, the sociologist Alice Debauche explains that “The financial cost does not necessarily deter the victims upstream, it is not the obstacle they think of first. But once they find the strength to initiate the proceedings, the financial costs can cause them to abandon the process. procedure”. This cost can indeed go beyond 10,000 euros, not counting the costs of medical consultations, psychological follow-up or travel in the event of a trial.
What “career” for rape complainants?
What happens to you after making a complaint? Most of victims suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder: 70% of them, according to the Feminist Collective Against Rape. For those who file a complaint and whose name is revealed, the media exposure lasts a while and can be cruel, harassing, denigrating. Then usually comes forgetting. As a test, name 10 personalities accused of rape. Then name 10 complainants who became famous afterwards. The actresses who accused Harvey Weinstein of rape did not benefit from it in their careers, quite the contrary: considered dangerous, difficult, unmanageable, “crazy”, they were sometimes blacklisted after having raised the alarm. The only profit that can be obtained? Let justice be done. And that one day, finally, the denunciation of systemic sexual violence can be done without violence for those who denounce it.
Missions: Mathilde is an expert in subjects related to women’s rights and health. Addicted to Instagram and Twitter, never stingy with a good …