“Justice wake up”, “Never again”. A few thousand demonstrators gathered on the evening of Monday June 8 in dozens of cities in France and in front of the Chancellery in Paris, calling into question justice in the Lyhanna affair and the treatment of sexual violence.
Many feminist and children’s associations, including NousToutes, the Women’s Foundation, Face à l’inceste, the Feminist Collective Against Rape, had called for rallies in the early evening in front of the courts of more than 160 cities in France. “Give us justice”, “for the victims, the sentence is indefinite”, “when a child calls for help, each silence is additional violence”, we could read on the signs in Paris.
In Agen (Lot-et-Garonne), whose prosecutor’s office is responsible for investigating Lyhanna’s death, at least a thousand people of all ages, including children, gathered in front of the courthouse. “The words of children are not taken seriously at all, the justice system places much more emphasis on the presumption of innocence than the words of the victims,” said Lori Bess, one of the organizers of this citizen gathering of an unprecedented scale in this city.
In front of the Auch judicial court (Gers), several hundred people gathered to shout “Lyhanna, never again”. In front of this court located around thirty kilometers from Fleurance, numerous signs demanded “justice for our daughters” or proclaimed “Darmanin resignation”, a slogan taken up by the crowd which gradually transformed it, briefly, into “prosecutor resignation”.
In Paris, the gathering which was to take place in front of the Ministry of Justice on Place Vendôme was banned by the police headquarters and moved to the Île de la Cité for “risk of disturbing public order”. “What are they afraid of? of the anger of women and children? », Reacted Anne-Cécile Mailfert, president of the Women’s Foundation.
“A lot of work to do”
However, it was in Place Vendôme that the largest gathering took place, despite the ban, joined by the actresses Anna Mouglalis and Judith Godrèche, the daughter of Richard Berry, Coline Berry, and the activist Arnaud Gallais.
Several hundred demonstrators – mostly women -, many of them “angry”, gathered to shouts of “Darmanin resignation” and “Justice for children” under the windows of the Chancellery, protected by several dozen members of the police. Some Femen activists stripped naked while shouting “justice for Lyhanna”.
“What is more dangerous, a government and a justice system that leaves rapists in the wild or a demonstration of pacifists who will make the world turn itself around? », Reacted television host Flavie Flament in Paris, who filed a complaint against singer Patrick Bruel.
“Our children are raped by repeat offenders. There is a lot of work to be done in justice, education, all public services,” declared Andréa Bescond, filmmaker and author of “Chatouilles” on BFMTV. Representatives of associations for the defense of women and children declared that they were leading the “same fight” against “male violence”, “against a system which protects the aggressors more than the victims”.
In Lyon, around 800 people gathered in front of the Rhône Court of Appeal. “I am here as a grandmother, because this situation is intolerable. I’m afraid for my grandchildren. There are big flaws in the justice system in France,” said Virginie Maurin, 68, a retired nurse.
The associations are calling for the adoption of a “comprehensive bill to combat violence against women and children”, tabled at the end of 2025 but which has never been examined.
