French Prime Minister François Bayrou Testifies in Baby Abuse Scandal at Notre-Dame de Bétharram
PARIS, France, Could 14, 2025 – French Prime Minister François Bayrou confronted a vital second in his five-month tenure as he testified underneath oath earlier than a parliamentary committee on Wednesday, addressing allegations of systemic bodily and sexual abuse at Notre-Dame de Bétharram, a personal Catholic college in southwestern France. The inquiry, specializing in the state’s failure to observe and forestall violence in colleges from 1957 to 2004, has positioned Bayrou underneath intense scrutiny for his roles as training minister (1993–1997) and native official in Pau, the place he has been mayor since 2014. Critics, together with opposition lawmakers, accuse him of understanding in regards to the abuses and failing to behave, claims he vehemently denies.
The scandal, which has seen over 200 authorized complaints filed since February 2024, entails allegations of bodily beatings, sexual assaults, and rape by clergymen and employees on the college, situated close to Bayrou’s political stronghold. The case gained traction after a 2023 social media marketing campaign by former pupil Alain Esquerre, who authored a ebook detailing the abuses and shaped a victims’ group. Esquerre has accused the state of failing to guard Bétharram’s youngsters, with survivors recounting traumatic experiences, together with nighttime visits by clergymen that left lifelong scars.
Bayrou’s testimony, which started at 5:00 p.m. (1500 GMT), was grilled by co-rapporteurs Paul Vannier (La France Insoumise) and Violette Spillebout, who sought to make clear what he knew throughout the Nineties. Bayrou has maintained he was unaware of sexual violence, stating in February, “I used to be by no means knowledgeable of any incidents of violence, not to mention sexual violence.” He ordered an inspection in 1996 after a bodily abuse case surfaced, however claimed its findings have been “favorable.” Nonetheless, investigative outlet Mediapart revealed proof, together with witness statements from a 1998 investigator, Alain Hontangs, and decide, Christian Mirande, suggesting Bayrou was knowledgeable of abuse allegations, together with a rape case involving a former headmaster. Bayrou denies intervening in any investigation and threatened to sue Mediapart, although no lawsuit has been filed.
The scandal took a private flip in April when Bayrou’s eldest daughter, Hélène Perlant, 53, revealed she was crushed by a priest at a Bétharram summer season camp in 1987, when she was 14. Perlant, who shared her story in Esquerre’s ebook and Paris Match, described being dragged by her hair, kicked, and humiliated, however stated she solely knowledgeable her father shortly earlier than the information broke. She supported his declare of ignorance, stating, “The extra concerned you might be, the much less you see,” however recalled a 1998 dialog the place Bayrou mentioned allegations together with her after assembly Choose Mirande. Bayrou expressed devastation, saying the revelation “stabs me within the coronary heart as a father,” and insisted his focus stays on supporting victims.
Opposition figures, notably from the left, have accused Bayrou of mendacity to parliament, with Vannier alleging a “conspiracy of silence.” Posts on X, comparable to these from @MarieMesmeur and @ChristopheBex, replicate public outrage, accusing Bayrou of overlaying up “pedocriminality” and demanding his resignation. The Greens have labeled his statements “perjury,” whereas a Socialist lawmaker anonymously referred to as him “politically completed.” A senior Macron ally warned that mendacity underneath oath may finish his profession, although Bayrou’s workforce insists he’s not the inquiry’s topic and is making ready diligently to counter contradictions.
Regardless of surviving no-confidence votes, Bayrou’s approval score has plummeted to 27%, beneath President Emmanuel Macron’s, per a latest IFOP ballot. Macron expressed confidence in Bayrou on TF1, saying, “I do know he’ll reply all questions,” and signaled openness to Bayrou’s proposed referendum on France’s €40 billion deficit discount plan. Analysts, together with Eurasia Group, recommend the scandal could not topple Bayrou alone however may embolden opponents amid France’s funds disaster and political fragmentation.
The inquiry, set to conclude in June, has uncovered systemic failures in France’s oversight of Catholic colleges, with the French bishops’ convention denouncing the “alarming” abuses. Bayrou has promised extra magistrates to analyze and assist for victims outdoors the statute of limitations, following a February assembly with survivors. The Bétharram case, dubbed a “nationwide training #MeToo” by Schooling Minister Elisabeth Borne, continues to gas debate over accountability and institutional cover-ups.
Sources: POLITICO, France24, Le Monde, BBC, The Guardian, NDTV, Reuters, posts on X
