French woman who refused sex with husband not to blame for divorce, rights court says

The European Court of Human Rights has sided with a French woman who French courts had ruled to be at fault in her divorce because she refused to have sex with her husband. The top court said the woman’s human rights had been violated.

Three things to know

  1. The defendant, identified as H.W., filed for divorce in 2012 after more than 25 years of marriage, citing her husband at fault. She said he had become violent, bad-tempered and had prioritized his work over family life. Her husband argued that for several years she had failed to fulfill her marital duties by withholding sex and made slanderous accusations. French courts found that H.W. was at fault; the country’s top appeals court rejected her final appeal.
  2. The ECHR found that placing the blame entirely on H.W.’s lack of sexual intimacy with her husband violated her right “to respect of her private and family rights.” The court found that the mere existence of an obligation for “marital duties” ran counter to sexual freedom and the right to bodily autonomy.
  3. This comes at a particularly salient time for women’s rights in France, as the high-profile case of Gisele Pelicot’s mass rape by her husband and several dozen men he recruited shocked the world and drew attention to the treatment of women in French society.

Listen to NPR’s State of the World podcast for a human perspective on global stories in just a few minutes, every weekday.


What does this mean for women’s rights in France?

In an unprecedented move, Pelicot chose to make her case public, which forced France to confront its patriarchal culture and sparked deep soul-searching about rape, consent and women’s rights to bodily autonomy.

The ECHR ruling will fuel that conversation.

Lilia Mhissen, H.W’s lawyer, released a statement celebrating their victory, with the hope that it will inspire more change.

“I hope this decision will mark a turning point in the fight for women’s rights in France,” she said, as reported by Reuters. “It is now imperative that France, like other European countries, such as Portugal or Spain, take concrete measures to eradicate this rape culture and promote a true culture of consent and mutual respect.”

Dive deeper with NPR

 

Andrew Tate, facing rape and trafficking charges in Romania, is back in the U.S.

The Tate brothers have been allowed to leave Romania, where they were charged with human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal group to sexually exploit women. They arrived in Florida on Thursday.

Musk says work to stop Ebola was accidentally cut but restored. Experts raise doubts

Elon Musk said USAID's "Ebola prevention" was "accidentally canceled" but "immediately" restored. Health specialists following the current outbreak in Uganda raise doubts about the restoration.

The U.S. resumes hundreds of millions in security aid to Taiwan, annoying China

The U.S. has unfrozen millions in security assistance for Taiwan, with an eye toward China.

Pentagon directs removal of trans service members from military

Service members and recruits who are diagnosed with or treated for gender dysphoria are to be separated from the U.S. military in accordance with an executive order issued a month ago by President Trump.

Natasha Rothwell on checking into ‘The White Lotus’ Thailand: ‘It felt like home’

In the new season of The White Lotus, Rothwell reprises her role of spa manager Belinda, a woman "on the precipice of change" as she straddles the line between guest and staffer.

Bill advances which would further protect police from criminal, civil prosecution

A recent bill in Alabama’s legislature would establish new legal protections for police officers who use physical or deadly force on a person while in the line of duty. Bill supporters say it will improve police safety, recruitment and retention. But critics worry it would give police officers immunity from criminal prosecution. 

More Front Page Coverage