WARNING: The details in this story may be distressing to some readers.
Gisele Pelicot, the French woman drugged by her ex-husband so she could be raped and sexually abused by him and dozens of strangers, has called for "macho" society to change its attitude on rape.
"It's time that the macho, patriarchal society that trivialises rape changes," Ms Pelicot said in her closing statement at the trial of her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, and 50 other men on rape and sexual assault charges.
"It's time we changed the way we look at rape," she told the court in the southern city of Avignon.
Dominique Pelicot has already pleaded guilty to drugging his ex-wife, raping her and inviting other men to abuse her.
He has been in the dock along with 49 other men, since early September. Another defendant remains at large.
Ms Pelicot, 71, said the marathon hearings were the trial of "cowardice".
Dominique Pelicot listened, with his head bowed.
"I've seen people take the stand who deny rape, and some who admit it," she said.
"I want to say to these men: at what point did Mrs Pelicot give you her consent when you entered the room? At what point do you become aware of this inert body? At what point do you not report it to the police?"
"I can hear this gentleman saying 'a finger is not rape'," she added.
The trial entered its final stages this week, with Gisele and Dominique Pelicot addressing the court before prosecutors are set to give their closing arguments and make their sentencing demands for the defendants.
Investigators have counted around 200 instances of rape, most of them by her husband and more than 90 by strangers.
Ms Pelicot said her former husband "had a lot of fantasies that I couldn't fulfil".
"But why did it come to this? I think what he wanted was Mrs Pelicot and not someone else," she said.
"As I didn't want to go to a swingers' club, he thought he'd found the solution by putting me to sleep."
"I've lost 10 years of my life that I'll never make up for. This scar will never heal."
She said she would never forgive her former husband.
The case has sparked horror, protests and a debate about male violence in French society.
Dominique Pelicot has confessed to being a rapist. If convicted, he would emerge with a record as one of France's worst sex offenders.
Of the co-defendants, only 14 have admitted the charges of aggravated rape, for which most of them face up to 20 years imprisonment if convicted.
The 35 others deny they raped Gisele Pelicot and maintain that they thought they were taking part in sex games.
Ms Pelicot discovered in 2020 that her partner of five decades had for years been secretly administering her large doses of tranquillisers to rape her and invite dozens of strangers to join him in their home in the village of Mazan.
Outside the court, Valentine Rioufol, a member of a local feminist group, said the trial had shone a light on issues with the French justice system.
"We learned a lot in this trial with the lifting of the closed hearing. We saw all the dysfunctions. We saw all the problems that exist in this justice system. We understood why only 0.6 per cent of rapists were punished," she said.
"We witnessed the events unfold, saw how the victims were relentlessly harassed, and came to understand why so few women in France come forward to file complaints.
"We hope for justice, but we are not certain. What we need are exemplary sentences. For now, we are waiting for the verdicts."
Dominique Pelicot gives final statement
The sons and daughter of Dominique Pelicot told the court on Monday, local time, that they wanted their father punished severely, adding they would never forgive him.
Caroline Darian told the court earlier in the trial her father had abused her, but didn't have proof.
Naked and partially-naked photographs of her were found on her father's computer.
Pelicot looked at Ms Darian, who was sat in the courtroom on Tuesday and said he never touched her or his grandchildren.
That prompted his daughter to shout across the room, "You don't even have the courage to tell the truth!"
"You will die in a lie. You are alone in your lie," Ms Darian said.
Pelicot again told the court he was abused as a boy and traumatised by the experience but insisted that didn't "excuse anything".
In a closing statement, he again admitted to the accusations, saying that his "motive" was wanting to satisfy a "fantasy".
He added that he wanted to control women.
"I came to do what I did through people who willingly accepted what I proposed," he told the court.
Pelicot is due back in the witness stand on Wednesday in France.
The court's verdict on all the charges, and the sentencing, is expected in late December.
ABC/wires
