"Aggressor, stalker, you are done for, the women are in the street". Chanting slogans and holding purple placards with the name of female victims, 150,000 people rallied on Saturday under the banner of "Nous Toutes" (All of Us Women). Their aim? Stopping domestic violence. The Debate looks at the measures unveiled by the government to tackle the issue, as domestic abuse continues to kill and to cause long-lasting damage to those who survive and those who witness it.
Femicide is the issue that has made the government act. In France, a total of 138 women have been murdered so far this year alone. Every three days, a woman is killed by a partner or ex-partner, in almost exclusively male-on-female crime.
French Prime Minister Édouard Phillippe, flanked by Gender Equality Minister Marlène Schiappa, revealed the new measures, including a €370 million investment in preventing violence against women. The government has also pledged to seize firearms from abusive spouses and better train police.
Will it be enough to curb the problem? The country has one of the highest domestic violence rates in Europe, which President Emmanuel Macron has described as "France’s shame".
Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Maya-Anaïs Yataghène and Jimena Morales-Velasco.
