France will launch a major operation for women’s safety, which includes recommendations and preventative measures for witnesses and victims of assault, on Tuesday, announced French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin.
Five million flyers will be distributed by the end of the summer throughout France’s streets and public transport systems by the police and gendarmerie to “remind each and every one of the gestures to have when witnessing or being the victim of aggression.”
The flyer includes a QR code that links to a website created by the Interior Ministry, where anyone can report incidents and contact police officers online at any time of the day or night.
The prevention campaign also gives recommendations to women in the event of an assault in a public space: make noise, alert bystanders whenever possible, notify the police as soon as possible and report the incident.
Witnesses of aggression are also advised to try to intervene or create a diversion and then notify the police.
According to the Haut-Commissariat à l’Égalité (HCE) 2023 annual report on sexism in France, the situation is “alarming”.
About nine in ten women say they anticipate sexist acts and comments from men and adopt avoidance behaviours to avoid being subjected to them, according to the data published in the report in January.
“Sexism is not declining in France. On the contrary, it persists and its most violent manifestations are getting worse,” the report highlights, adding that eight in ten women are afraid to go home alone at night.
The Interior Ministry’s prevention campaign comes at a time when just more than a quarter (27%) of the French population consider government action to be adequate to fight sexism and physical, verbal and sexual aggression, according to HCE.
(Clara Bauer-Babef | EURACTIV.fr)
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