"We are here. We are listening to you (…) Shame today changes sides. The silence built by the criminals and the successive cowardice, finally, explodes", Emmanuel Macron told victims of sexual violence and incest in a video posted to his Twitter account on January 23. "To you who have freed yourself from a burden that you have carried for too long, to you who are going to do it and sometimes hesitate, I just want to tell you: we are here ", says the President of the Republic.
Open dialogue to protect children
According to the association Mémoire traumatique et victimologie, 165,000 children are victims of rape or attempted rape each year in France. "We are very numerous to testify to the violence suffered. Unfortunately the fight is long. To protect the victims, our children or better to listen to the victims, there are many decisions to be made ", explains Andréa Bescond, director of the film Tickling and co-author of the book What if we talked about it (ed. Harpers Collins).
For Andréa Bescond, it is important to free the word around sexual violence against minors. "I think we have to talk about sexual violence to our children without traumatizing them ", underlines the director. She also wants childcare professionals, magistrates and law enforcement to be trained to listen to victims, understand the system of control and traumatic amnesia.
"Now politically, we need concrete actions"
In her book, Andréa Bescond unveils several tips for opening a dialogue on sexual violence with a child. In particular, she recommends reminding him that his private parts belong to him and that no one has the right to touch them, even if they are a relative. "This can make it possible to generate a preventive dialogue, and unfortunately sometimes curative. It is essential to take charge of the situation as soon as possible and to tell a child that he is never responsible for the abuse he is subjected to. It's always the fault of the aggressor", she recalls.
In the eyes of Andréa Bescond, it is adults who are afraid to talk about child crime, incest and sexual violence. According to the director, the children are ready to discuss it so that they are warned, understood and heard. "Now politically, we need concrete actions, but this year, not in two years. This is urgent and essential. Otherwise it's shame, we can't let this happen. We cannot remain silent, we need actions ", warns Andréa Bescond.
Read also :
⋙ Sexual assault, verbal and physical violence: those under 26 are also affected
⋙ #Iwas: victims of sexual violence in their childhood testify on Twitter
⋙ Assault or sexual violence: how to help a close victim