“It's terrible what happened to that woman.”
This may be the annual Christmas market in the center of Mazan square, with life going on as usual, but a dark cloud has been hanging over this small French town.
It was in Mazan that Dominique Pelicot, by his own admission in court, invited dozens of men he had recruited online over to his home to rape his wife Gisèle Pelicot after drugging him for her. Fifty-one are indicted.
The trial in nearby Avignon was adjourned on Monday ahead of verdicts expected later this week. Since the hearings began in early September, they have captivated the country, even the world.
That's partly because of the sordid information, but mostly because Gisèle Pelicot, 71, waived her right to anonymity, putting her name and face to a victim, a decision rarely seen .
“We are waiting impatiently for the sentences to come down,” said 52-year-old Yannick Richard from his cottage. The retired person sells knitted stuffed animals and sweaters at the market.
“We have to really celebrate the event. We can't ignore it with small sentences.”
Gisèle Pelicot became an icon for those who fought against sexual violence for testifying about the harrowing events, in which she was rendered unconscious by her now husband, who inviting strangers into their home to force her, between 2011 and 2020.
In Mazan however, not many want to talk about the issue. Most of the town's approximately 6,000 citizens are fed up, angry that their home has become synonymous with rape.
Those who speak try to stay away from the details, instead highlighting the beauty of their city.
'I find it terrible'
“As a Mazanaise, I don't have too much of an opinion on the matter. It's really sad what happened to that woman. As a woman, it's terrible for me,” said singer Poline de Peretti, who is 58 years old. has lived in the town for 18 years.
“The rapist Mazan? No, no, no. It's the story of Madame Pelicot and the Pelicot family. I'd like to invite you to visit our town. The people are charming.”
However, de Peretti can't help but comment.
“It's Madame Pelicot but it could be anyone's Madame. You or me. We don't know.”
House of horrors
The first thing you notice about the home at the center of France's worst ever rape case are the blue shutters. Blue shutters on a cream colored bungalow with a terracotta roof.
An ordinary home where anything but ordinary went on inside.
There, just a 10-minute walk from the main square, Dominique Pelicot says he would invite the men to come and rape his wife, while he filmed her.
He has pleaded guilty, and in his testimony he explained that he told the men to park at the parking lot of a nearby sports field, so that they would not raise suspicion.
They would then walk, under cover of darkness, the 100 meters or so to the home on a dead end street.
“The reputation of the town, a wonderful village like this – it is broken by this kind of person, this kind of attitude,” said Christian Lhermitte, who has lived in Mazan for just five past months.
“I think justice will be served.”
His wife Hugues Lhermitte stopped him.
“I don't think the punishments will be harsh enough, that's for sure. “
One by one, all but one of the defendants stepped up to the microphone to speak Monday. Dominique Pelicot, 72, was first. His voice was weak and halting.
'Salute to my ex-wife's confidence'
In his final statement to the court, he said he would like to “begin by saluting my ex-wife's courage,” and asked for forgiveness from his family.
Most of the other men simply said, “I have nothing to add.”
Some pleaded not guilty – which drew jeers from members of the public watching from the spill room where the courtroom was shown on TV.
Walking out of the courtroom, Gisèle Pelicot received a compliment and stopped to talk to a few women who have been supporting her.
Last month, prosecutors asked the panel of judges for the maximum possible penalty of 20 years in prison for aggravated rape against Dominique Pelicot and terms of 10 to 18 years against the other defendants charged with the same charge, if found guilty.
The presiding judge told the court on Monday that the decisions are to be delivered on Thursday, but that they could be postponed until Friday morning.
