Sexual violence in sport: former minister Marie-George Buffet calls for a specific agency

Europe 1 with AFP 12:20 p.m., December 07, 2023

Setting up a specific agency to prevent and deal with gender-based and sexual violence in sport, injecting more democracy into federations, increasing the role of the Olympic committee in terms of ethics... Former sports minister Marie-George Buffet submitted more than 30 proposals to the government on Thursday.

"A framework law" and a "consultation" of local stakeholders and elected officials

In charge of a report on ethics and democratic life with former athletics champion Stéphane Diagana, the former minister (1997-2002) would like "a framework law" on sport, preceded by a "consultation" of local stakeholders and elected officials in early 2024 in order to adopt some of these measures.

A number of them "require the commitment of additional financial levers," they said in the report published on Thursday.

The establishment of a "specific agency"

On the issue of gender-based and sexual violence, which has shaken the world of sport since the revelations in 2020 of champion Sarah Abitbol raped by her coach, the report recommends the establishment of a "specific agency", in the form of an "independent administrative authority".

This would make it possible to "continue and extend the action" of the "Signal Sport" ministerial unit set up by former minister Roxana Maracineanu (2020-2022) in the wake of the Abitbol affair and to "ensure the centralised and unified treatment at the administrative and disciplinary levels" of this violence.

The role of sports federations, which have sometimes done nothing and failed to protect victims, is highly questioned, as was recently shown by the hearings of certain federation presidents before a committee of inquiry in the Assembly. In front of these same deputies, Marie-George Buffet (PCF) described the sports movement as "extremely weakened", in particular because of its "self-isolation".

A precautionary suspension mechanism in the event of a criminal conviction

In order to protect sportsmen and sportswomen, the report also recommends "a mechanism for precautionary suspension in the event of a criminal conviction of a federation officer following an examination by the Federal Ethics Committee".

To strengthen democracy within federations, the report recommends that clubs should be able to participate in the federation's "elections" and "general assemblies" as well as a "proportional vote" system for the election of executive committees.

Strict parity in all governing bodies

The report also recommends "strict parity in all governing bodies" of the sports movement, including the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF), as well as "provisions relating to the obligation to publish accounts and procedures for awarding contracts".

In order to strengthen "the independence of federal ethics committees", the authors want "strict rules of incompatibility" and want these committees to be able to act on their own. "Many still lack independence and in-house skills," the report notes. And it provides that the CNOSF can replace the federal ethics committee "in the event of a deficiency".