French President Emmanuel Macron is defending his decision to put a man accused of rape in charge of all the nation’s police forces, citing the presumption of innocence.
After multiple protests by women’s rights groups against Gerald Darmanin’s recent appointment as Interior Minister, Macron insisted on “I share the feminist cause” and pledged to continue pressing for tougher measures against sexual violence and equality of genre.
French President Emmanuel Macron attends the Bastille Day military parade on Tuesday, July 14, 2020 in Paris. France pays tribute to nurses, ambulance drivers, supermarket cashiers and others on its biggest national holiday on Tuesday. The usual grandiose Bastille Day military parade in Paris is being redesigned this year to celebrate the heroes of the coronavirus pandemic. (Ludovic Marin, Pool via AP)
When asked about the allegation of rape during a Bastille Day interview on French television networks, Macron was agitated and said: “There is a presumption of innocence. … No cause can be defended fairly if it does so by ignoring the principles of our democracy. “
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Darmanin firmly denies the rape allegation and an investigation is underway.
In an apparent reference to the #MeToo movement, Macron insisted that justice should take its course and that no one should become a “victim of a street and social media trial”, and that France should not adopt the “worst of Anglo-Saxons “. -Saxon society “.
France’s Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin attends the Bastille Day military parade on Tuesday, July 14, 2020 in Paris. France pays tribute to nurses, ambulance drivers, supermarket cashiers and others on its biggest national holiday on Tuesday. The usual grandiose Bastille Day military parade in Paris is being redesigned this year to celebrate the heroes of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo / Christophe Ena, Pool)
The US-led movement that allowed women to speak online about abuse by powerful men has met with a mixed reception in France.
French feminist groups want Darmanin to resign, saying the appointment is a blow to victims of sexual violence and contradicts Macron’s promises to make gender equality a “great cause” of his presidency.
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They are also angered by the appointment of new Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti, who derided the #MeToo movement and defended a senior government official accused of rape.
