The daughter of French Prime Minister François Bayrou, Hélène Perlant, has come forward with troubling allegations regarding her experiences of physical abuse during her childhood at a Catholic school that has recently come under scrutiny. This revelation has sent shockwaves through the political landscape, particularly as it pertains to Bayrou’s leadership.
Details of the Allegations
Reports indicate that François Bayrou was taken aback upon learning that his eldest daughter, aged 53, was among the individuals who have filed complaints against the Notre-Dame de Bétharram school, situated near his hometown in southwest France. Over the past year, hundreds of former students have reported instances of physical and sexual abuse perpetrated by staff members at this institution from 1957 to 2004.
Amidst these allegations, Bayrou has faced accusations of neglecting to act on prior claims of abuse during his tenure as education minister in the 1990s, a charge he vehemently denies. In a recent interview with Paris Match, Perlant recounted a harrowing incident involving a priest at the school while she attended a summer camp in the Pyrenees.
“I kept quiet for 30 years,” Perlant stated. “I may have wanted to protect my father, unconsciously, I think, from the political blows he was taking locally.”
Impact and Response
During her recollection, Perlant described the aggressive behavior of the priest, who allegedly “suddenly grabbed me by the hair, dragged me along the ground for several metres and punched and kicked me all over my body, especially in the stomach.” She expressed that this traumatic incident left her “covered in bruises” and with “severe tinnitus.”
This personal testimony coincides with the upcoming release of a book titled The Silence of Bétharram, authored by Alain Esquerre, another victim, which compiles various testimonies including that of Perlant.
Perlant has stressed that her father was unaware of the abuse taking place at the school. “Obviously, one might think he had all the information,” she remarked. “But I put him on the same level as all parents. The more involved you are, the less you see, the less you understand.”
In response to the allegations, Bayrou, who assumed the role of prime minister in December, declared in February his intention to pursue legal action against Mediapart, which claimed he must have known about the abuses during the 1990s. “I was never informed of this sexual violence,” he asserted during a session in the National Assembly.
The political implications of these revelations are significant, as Bayrou is scheduled to testify before parliament on May 14 as part of an investigation into violence in schools, further intertwining his personal and professional life in the context of this ongoing scandal.