Having become a feminist icon following the Mazan rape trial, Gisèle Pelicot received the Liberty Prize, awarded by 10,000 young people, “for her fight against the trivialization of rape and sexual violence,” said the Normandy region, which created this prize in 2019, on Tuesday, May 6.
The Liberté Prix, awarded by 10,000 young people from 84 countries, including France, has 25,000 euros and will be awarded on June 3 in Caen (Calvados) to Gisèle Pelicot in the presence of thousands of young people and 30 world war veterans, the region said in a statement.
“A recent and exemplary fight in favor of freedom”
The Belgian association War Affected People’s Association (WAPA), which helps children affected by armed conflicts, and Melati Wijsen, a 24 -year -old Indonesian activist fighting against the impact of plastic on the environment, are the other two named for this prize.
In order for “educational awareness of awareness of freedom, peace and human rights”, this prize invites “young people from 15 to 25 years old in France and worldwide, to appoint each year or an organization engaged in a recent and exemplary fight each year in favor of freedom,” said the region.
Gisèle Pelicot underwent tens of rapes for a decade by her ex-husband who had previously sedated her, and at least fifty strangers recruited by him on the Internet.
Gisèle Pelicot among the personalities cited by Time
During her trial in 2024, she became a feminist icon, especially after having allowed a public trial by refusing the camera, so that the “shame changes camp”, in her words, and no longer weighs on the shoulders of rape victims.
Named among the “100 most influential people of 2025” by the American magazine Time in mid-April, Gisèle Pelicot is also one of the three finalist candidates for the “Vigdis” prize of the Council of Europe, whose final winner will be announced on June 23.