Paris: On Friday, the newly appointed French Minister of Justice, Didier Migaud, declared on public radio channel, France Inter that he was in favour of integrating the notion of sexual consent into French Law. The debate surrounding the redefinition of this crime in the penal code has resurfaced in France with the Mazan rape trial that shook all of France.
The Mazan trial began four weeks ago in the city of Avignon and the issue of non-consent has come up frequently during the hearings. In this case, a certain Mr. Dominique Pelicot is being tried, alongside 50 other people, for having drugged his wife for ten years with the aim of raping her and having her raped by dozens of strangers he recruited on the Internet.
Last March, French President Emmanuel Macron had already expressed his intention to change the definition of rape in French law by integrating the notion of consent, like other European countries. The head of state had hoped that a proposed text could see the light of day by the end of this year. However, with the dissolution of the French Parliament in early June, this subject was shelved.
At present, Article 222-23 of the French Criminal Code defines rape as "any act of sexual penetration, of whatever nature, or any oro-genital act committed on another individual or by violence, constraint, threat or surprise by the perpetrator on the individual. " There is no explicit mention of “sexual consent.” The sentence for rape in France is 7 years of jail and a fine of €100,000.
Enshrining consent in law would mean redefining rape as any sexual act without explicit agreement. The 2024 report on the state of sexism by the French High Council for Equality lists several examples of “lack of consent”. Having sex with a person who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs without first ensuring that they are able to say "yes" or "no", constitutes a “situation of non-consent.” Carrying out sexual intercourse with your partner through "insistence" or emotional blackmail when they "do not want to" or say “no” is also a "non-consent scenario."
If “sexual consent” is indeed included into the definition of what constitutes a rape, a defendant found guilty of a sexual act without consent would risk the same punishment, that of 7 years of imprisonment and a fine of €100,000.
Changing the law on rape could also have an impact on social and collective representations of sexual violence. According to the study carried out by the High Council for Equality, 37% of women have already experienced non-consensual sex. In the age-group of 25 to 49 year-olds, the percentage is around 50%. However, “only 23% of men admit to having been the perpetrator of at least one situation of non-consent,” according to the study. This gap shows that there is still a considerable lack of awareness among men.
In recent years, other European countries have included sexual consent in their criminal codes. Sweden in the year 2018 passed a law defining rape as a sexual act without explicit consent even in the absence of threats or violence. Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg and Greece too have brought about similar changes in their laws. In 2022 Spanish law too stipulated the obligation of consent.
