French Mass Rape Trial Must 'Change Relations Between Men, Women': Prosecutor

The trial in France of a man charged with enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his heavily-sedated wife has shaken French society and must fundamentally change relationships between men and women, a prosecutor said Monday.

"This trial is shaking up our society in our relationship with each other, in the most intimate relationships between human beings," Jean-Francois Mayet told the court in the southern city of Avignon.

The trial is making French society work "to understand our needs, our emotions, our desires and above all to take into account those of others," he said.

What is at stake, he added, "is not a conviction or an acquittal" but "to fundamentally change the relations between men and women," he added.

The prosecution is outlining its demands for the sentencing of the 51 men on trial, including the main accused Dominique Pelicot, the former husband of the victim Gisele Pelicot.

The men, aged between 26 and 74 years, are largely charged with aggravated rape and face up to 20 years of imprisonment if convicted.

"The facts, and the personality of each accused, were taken into account even in our sentencing demands", Mayet added, saying that "justice needs calm and peaceful debates."

He also praised the "courage" and "dignity" of Gisele Pelicot, the victim of some 200 repeated rapes, half of which were attributed to her ex-husband.

Mayet thanked her for allowing hearings to be open to the public and allowing some of the 20,000 or so photos and videos taken without her knowledge by Dominique Pelicot to be shown.

"You were right, madam: the past few weeks have shown the importance of showing this, so that shame changes sides," he added.

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