Abe Pierre has been accused by seven women of sexual harassment between 1970 and 2005.

From our correspondent
Paris –my dad Pierre (1912-2007), the founding priest of the Emmaus Society, was dedicated to fighting poverty, especially helping the homeless. Seven women accused her of indecent gestures between 1970 and 2005.The French Catholic newspaper reveals LacroixAccording to a report published by the Emmaus Foundation and the Abbey Pierre Foundation, some allegations may be classified by courts as sexual assault, and others as sexual comments and sexual innuendos.

In the June 2023 The first woman contacted Emmaüs France officials, claiming that she had been sexually abused by Abbé Pierre in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Her parents were friends of the priest at the time. When the woman was a minor, Abbé Pierre, 50 years her senior, He was touching her chest On several occasions when he was a guest at the family home.

The woman insisted that she had suffered. Other sexual assaults as an adultOn his return from a trip to Italy, “Abbé Pierre kissed her on the mouth in a completely unexpected and brutal manner.” In 2003, four years before his death, the man He asked her forgiveness in the presence of his father..

Following this first testimony, Emmaüs International, Emmaüs France and the Abbé Pierre Foundation commissioned Egaé, an independent organisation fighting against sexual and gender-based violence, to conduct More in-depth investigationsIn the report published yesterday, a total of seven women They spoke of violence or inappropriate behaviour by the man who was chosen 16 times by the French as “favorite person of the year”.

Father Pierre He usually acted in a hotel room or office.The oldest episodes date back to 1970 and the most recent to 2005, when Abbé Pierre was 92 years old. As part of the investigation carried out by the association “Egay”, created by the feminist activist Caroline de Haas, a woman revealed that she had known about the matter. Other similar episodes in the 1950sThe report also indicates that at least five other people, who are potential victims, have been identified but have not yet been interviewed.

When Abe Pierre was alive He was confided that he had broken his vow of chastity. In a book of interviews published by Frederic Lenoir in 2005: “I experienced sexual desire and its very rare satisfaction.” In 2005 he spoke of a “weak point” and a “passing incident.”

After the report was issued Catholic Church in France The French Bishops’ Conference announced on Wednesday that it “is keen to assure the people who have been victims of his deep compassion and shame that such acts could be committed by a priest.”