Dozens of accused deny rape, despite video evidence showing unconscious Gisèle Pelicot snoring loudly
Taking the stand in France’s biggest ever rape trial, Patrice N, 55, an electrician from the southern town of Carpentras, said he was a “jovial” guy and a fun dad who once trained youth football teams and had a “great respect for women”.
He denied the charges of rape, claiming rape had never been his intention. “To my mind, it was a game,” he told the court.
Continue reading...Bill will give new rights to millions of workers including protection from third-party harassment
Employers must protect their workers from sexual harassment – including from customers and clients – under the government’s sweeping new employment rights bill.
The new obligation is part of a series of measures published in Thursday’s landmark employment bill, which Labour had promised to lay before parliament within 100 days.
Continue reading...Ben Key confirms several personnel have been sacked, demoted or disciplined as a result of investigations
The head of the Royal Navy has issued an unreserved apology for “intolerable” misogyny in the Submarine Service, after a series of investigations across the navy exposed sexual harassment, bullying and assault of women within its ranks.
First Sea Lord Adm Sir Ben Key said he was “truly sorry” to the women who had suffered “misogyny, bullying and other unacceptable behaviours” while serving their country. “We must be better than this and do better than we have,” he said.
Senior figures forced juniors to tell them ‘shagging dits’, or personal sexual stories.
“Sniffing”, the practice of following the few women around, was “rife”, with women seen as “legitimate targets”.
“At least” one report of rape.
Those in command forced juniors to show them “sports photos”, compromising pictures of their partners, before allowing them to leave the room.
Women’s underwear going missing.
Continue reading...Man in Rotterdam faces €100 penalty after law introduced across Netherlands to tackle harassment in public spaces
A court in the Netherlands has fined a man for harassing and intimidating a woman on a street in Rotterdam, in the first conviction under a new law tackling sexual harassment in public spaces.
The 33-year-old man was fined €100 (£84) by a court in Rotterdam on Wednesday, months after he was accused of grabbing a woman on the street by the hips and holding her. The court set out an additional fine of €180 if he is caught reoffending.
Continue reading...Michael Ward says former Harrods owner ‘presided over a toxic culture’, describing it as ‘shameful period’
The managing director of Harrods has apologised and said the business “failed our colleagues” following sexual misconduct allegations against the department store’s former owner, Mohamed Al Fayed.
In a statement, Michael Ward said it is clear Fayed “presided over a toxic culture of secrecy, intimidation, fear of repercussion and sexual misconduct”.
Continue reading...Exclusive: store issues new statement as lawyers describe redress scheme it has set up as attempted ‘whitewash’
Harrods is investigating whether any of its current staff were “directly or indirectly involved” in the alleged sexual abuse of women by its former owner Mohamed Al Fayed.
With more than 100 women having come forward to allege being raped or assaulted by the Egyptian tycoon, the luxury store said it had launched a review and was in direct contact with Scotland Yard.
Continue reading...Mike Jeffries, now 80, has been accused of exploiting young men for sex in cities around the world from 2009-15
The former chief executive of the American fashion brand Abercrombie & Fitch faces new allegations this weekend of exploitation and abuse at sex events held around the world.
One witness said he attended a sex event in Spain with the former fashion boss Mike Jeffries and his British partner Matthew Smith, believing it was going to be a photoshoot, the BBC reported. Young men were injected with liquid Viagra at other events, according to witnesses.
Continue reading...Removal of popular cabinet member Silvio Almeida comes as a blow to Lula’s administration
Brazil’s president has sacked one of his most popular cabinet members after claims Silvio Almeida sexually harassed at least two women – one of whom is another prominent figure, the racial equality minister Anielle Franco.
Almeida, the human rights minister, has denied the allegations, while Franco thanked the president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, for his “decisive action”. But the scandal has dealt a major blow to Lula’s administration and has been greeted with deep dismay by the Black rights movement.
Continue reading...Medical tribunal suspends James Gilbert for eight months for the ‘serious misconduct’ it uncovered
A transplant surgeon found to have sexually harassed four colleagues has been suspended for eight months.
Three of the women James Gilbert, 47, harassed were trainees at the Oxford Transplant Centre, a medical tribunal heard.
Continue reading...Swift response by Renmin University to student’s post creates shockwave in a country where accusers are often ignored or sued
Public allegations of sexual harassment are rare in China. Swift responses to punish the accused are rarer still. So a recent case at one of China’s top universities, in which a student posted a video online accusing her supervisor of sexually harassing her, leading to his sacking, has created shockwaves.
On 21 July, a woman who identified herself as Wang Di posted an hour-long video on Weibo, in which she accused her PhD supervisor at Renmin University in Beijing, Wang Guiyuan, of physically and verbally abusing her for more than two years. The professor, a former Chinese Communist party representative at the university, threatened to block her graduation prospects, Wang Di said.
Continue reading...Men more likely to perpetrate sexual violence than women, and more likely to commit multiple forms of sexual violence, survey of 5,000 Australians shows
Just over one-fifth of Australians aged 18 to 45 have perpetrated a form of sexual violence since turning 18, and one in 14 have done so in the past year, a survey of more than 5,000 Australians has found.
The Australian Institute of Criminology report released Tuesday also found men were significantly more likely than women to have perpetrated sexual violence, with 26.4% doing so in adulthood, and 13.2% doing so in the past 12 months. That compared with 17.7% of women perpetrating sexual violence since turning 18, and 6.6% doing so in the past 12 months.
Continue reading...Mike Sneesby a signatory to all-staff email detailing response to allegations of predatory behaviour and bullying in newsrooms
Nine Entertainment has acknowledged “the trauma” caused by alleged acts of bullying, misuse of power and sexual harassment in its newsrooms and conceded to staff it needs to “do more” to make it a safe place to work.
In an all-staff email sent late on Thursday, Nine outlined its response to widespread reporting of predatory behaviour, bullying and sexual harassment by senior executives across the company.
Continue reading...Paolo Barone found guilty of voyeurism after taking photos of sleeping woman on train to St Albans in 2022
A Thameslink train driver who took photos up a woman’s skirt while she was asleep on a train has avoided jail, despite being found guilty of voyeurism.
The driver, Paolo Barone, was on his way home from a shift in September 2022 when he saw that the woman, 51, had fallen asleep on a train travelling from London Blackfriars to St Albans in Hertfordshire.
Continue reading...Daniel Kebede accuses government of failing to tackle issue of sexism and its spread online among children
The leader of the UK’s largest education union has called for an independent inquiry into the rise of sexism and misogyny among boys and young men, saying it should not be left to parents and schools to police.
Daniel Kebede, the general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said it was “a huge issue” in schools and expressed particular concern about the ease with which pupils are accessing aggressive hardcore pornography on their phones.
Continue reading...The 79-year-old actor who won a Golden Glove for his role as Oh II-nam on the hit Netflix show has been handed a suspended prison sentence
South Korean actor O Yeong-su, who starred in the first season of the hit Netflix series Squid Game, was convicted on Friday on charges of sexual harassment and handed a suspended prison sentence, a court official said.
The Seongnam branch of the Suwon district court sentenced O to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, as well as 40 hours of attendance at a sexual violence treatment programme, the court official said by telephone.
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html.
Continue reading...Film-maker held to account for dismissing claim of 1983 sexual assault against Charlotte Lewis as ‘heinous lie’
The film director Roman Polanski has gone on trial for libel in Paris after accusing a British actor who claimed he abused her of “a heinous lie”.
Charlotte Lewis, who was in court in Tuesday at the opening of the hearing, said she had been the victim of a “smear campaign” after she accused the film-maker of sexually abusing her as a teenager.
Continue reading...Actor’s landmark address comes amid claims arts sector has shrugged off sexual abuse for decades
The actor Judith Godrèche has denounced France’s “incestuous” film industry and called for the establishment of a commission of inquiry into sexual violence in the sector as she spoke in front of senators in the upper house of parliament.
The landmark hearing – the first time an artist has spoken to the senate about sexual and gender-based violence in the French film industry – comes amid claims that the world of arts has shrugged off sexism and sexual abuse for decades.
Continue reading...Star tells audience at prestigious César awards that they need to challenge powerful and abusive men whatever the career risk
Judith Godrèche has urged the French film industry to break its omertà on sexual abuse in an unprecedented address to the country’s most prestigious awards ceremony on Friday evening.
Godrèche, who says she was groomed and raped as a teenager by an acclaimed director, received a standing ovation as she took the stage at the Césars – the French equivalent of the Oscars.
Continue reading...Actor, who has accused two directors of raping her as a teenager, to address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony
Judith Godrèche, an actor who has accused two high-profile directors of raping her as a teenager, will address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony on Friday in an unusual move aimed at breaking what she calls the “omertà” surrounding the abuse of women and girls in the industry.
Godrèche, whose autobiographical hit TV show about the grooming of a 14-year-old girl has sparked a national debate, will take to the stage at the César awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars, which is broadcast live on television.
Continue reading...Discrimination and misogyny in classical music are denying women opportunities at festivals, venues and in recordings, research finds
A discordant chord over sexism in the classical music world has sounded again. The head of one of the most prestigious competitions is calling for the industry to confront an apparent bias that is holding back female pianists from pursuing concert careers, however brilliant their talent.
Fiona Sinclair, chief executive of the Leeds International Piano Competition, told the Observer that female pianists are failing to reach the top of their profession despite an equal number of men and women now training at conservatoires.
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