Sexual assault charges brought against France’s former ambassador to Vanuatu were dropped on Tuesday after he was fired unceremoniously for allegedly assaulting two women in neighbouring New Caledonia in February.
"In my opinion, an offence was committed, but I found the foreign ministry's response to be proportional to the seriousness of what happened," prosecutor Alexis Bouroz told the French news agency AFP.
Robby Judes denied he had sexually assaulted the women, but he was recalled to Paris earlier this year to give an explanation of his alleged conduct. He was sacked in March.
One of his accusers, Cherifa Linossier, the head of two business groups based in New Caledonia, said Judes had stroked “her bottom several times at a cocktail party" although she "expressed her disapproval".
"I have no intention of giving up," she said on a New Caledonian radio station.
"I don't understand the message being sent to women -- this isn't a personal fight, it's a fight for all those women who dare not speak out," she added.
