French lawmakers begin debate on 69-article bill against sexual violence

A cross-party response to systemic failures

French lawmakers in the National Assembly will open debate on Thursday, 1 October 2026, on a 69-article bill designed to combat sexual and gender-based violence. Sponsored by Socialist deputy Céline Thiébault-Martinez, the legislation brings together proposals across judicial, police, educational, and healthcare sectors. The reform package follows public outrage after recent criminal cases, notably the Mazan trial involving Gisèle Pelicot, the Le Scouarnec abuse scandal, and the abduction and murder of 11-year-old Lyhanna in the Gers department on 4 June 2026. These cases exposed systemic deficiencies in the processing of complaints across France, where research by the Institut des politiques publiques indicated that 94% of rape complaints in 2024 were dismissed without prosecution.

Judicial reforms and mandatory investigation rules

The bill incorporates 67 of the 140 measures originally drafted in 2024 by the Coalition féministe et enfantiste loi intégrale. Under the new judicial provisions, every judicial court in France will be required to maintain specialised magistrates trained in sexual violence. In addition, magistrates and investigators will face a mandatory minimum baseline of investigative acts, which makes searches of mobile phones and computers and formal interrogations of suspects obligatory before any dismissal. Laura Slimani, project director at the Fondation des femmes, explained the intent behind the new legal requirements.

It is the first time that we are going to provide a global response to the question of sexist and sexual violence in the country, including measures that tackle the justice system so that it finally adapts to the specific nature of this violence.

The legislation also expands protection orders to sexual violence cases outside of domestic partnerships and establishes incest as an autonomous criminal offence, expanding its legal definition to include cousins.

Political debates and budgetary friction

While the special parliamentary commission chaired by Renaissance deputy Christopher Weissberg approved the text unanimously last week with the Rassemblement National abstaining, friction remains between parliamentary sponsors and the government. Ecologist deputy Marie-Charlotte Garin, one of nine rapporteurs on the text, warned that lawmakers expect greater engagement from government ministries. The Ministry of the Interior has also opposed a requirement to establish dedicated specialised units in police stations, offering an amendment instead to maintain a single-desk reception model. Funding remains another core point of dispute. Osez le féminisme spokesperson Céline Piques criticized Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu after his 15 September editorial in Le Monde claimed 1.5 billion euros for anti-violence initiatives and 2.6 billion euros for child protection, which reporting revealed represented existing allocations rather than new funding.

Tight legislative calendar and planned protests

Debate in the National Assembly is scheduled to conclude on 9 October 2026 before the text moves to the Senate under an accelerated procedure. Lawmakers face a tight deadline, as parliamentary business must conclude by 28 February ahead of the upcoming presidential election campaign. According to data from the Independent Commission on Incest and Sexual Violence against Children (CIVIISE), 160,000 children and approximately 277,000 women suffer sexual violence each year in France.

Feminist organisations have called for a public demonstration on Monday, 5 October 2026, marching from the Ministry of Justice at Place Vendôme to the National Assembly to demand the passage and full financing of the bill.