March 21, 2013
Suja Jones, an Indian woman, has taken her French husband to court in the city of Bangalore, India, on charges of rape of their then 3 year-old daughter.
She is fighting a lonely battle.
The French authorities provided continued unilateral support to the accused, an employee at the French consulate in Bangalore, leaving the mother of three minor French citizens alone to fend for them.
The French media have given a very biased coverage of this case, based on the allegations of the accused father.
This undeniably added an unnecessary hardship on the already deeply wounded mother and children.

We, the undersigned, express our deep concern at the role and attitude of French authorities in this case, which has in many respects impeded and violated the right of the child to be protected and defended.

On the eve of the trial due to start on March 22, we express our solidarity with the 3 year old victim and support her mother in the defence of the child’s rights.

Background Information: For a comprehensive account of the role of French authorities as well as local Bangalore police, see Suja Jones’ appeal to the women assembled in New York during the March session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), devoted this year to violence against women. (URL: http://www.sacw.net/article3977.html)
This appeal was widely circulated to women’s organisations worldwide during the CSW and beyond.

Several actions were undertaken to demand from France a more ethical attitude in this case :

President Hollande during his February 2013 visit to New Delhi was requested to grant equal treatment to both parties, after his services received the lawyers of the accused at the Elysée Palace.
In a letter dated February 10, 2013, attention of the Minister of Women’s Rights in Paris, France, was drawn to actions of French diplomatic representation in India in support of the accused employee, juxtaposed with a campaign of harassment and slander against the mother.
The Minister was made aware of the following actions by senior French officials in India, who

• helped empty the joint account of the couple by cashing checks emitted by the accused father from his jail to the benefit of the deputee consul, leaving Suja Jones and the three children without means of subsistence ;
• still retain the passports of the French children of the couple, upon request of the accused father, in blatant disregard for the Indian court’s decision to grant temporary custody to the mother while the case is pending in court ; this also contravenes the obligation under French law  for every French citizen to carry identity documents;
• stood by the father in court while ignoring the presence of the mother and her lawyers ;
  
• pretend that this is a marital dispute not a rape case, although no divorce case has been filed till date;
• did not respond positively to any of the requests by the mother for financial and legal help.

• Ont vidé le compte bancaire joint du couple en encaissant des chèques 
émis par le père accusé depuis sa prison au bénéfice du Vice Consul,
 laissant Suja Jones et les 3 enfants sans moyens de subsistance ;

• Retiennent toujours les passeports des enfants français du couple, au
 mépris flagrant de la décision du tribunal indien d’ accorder la garde
 temporaire à la mère durant l’instruction du procès ; ceci contrevient 
aussi à l’obligation, selon la loi française, pour chaque citoyen de
porter sur soi des documents d’identité ;

• Se sont tenu aux côtés du père au tribunal, ignorant la mère et ses
 avocats ;

• Prétendent qu’il s’agit d’un différent conjugal et non d’un
viol, bien qu’aucune demande de divorce n’ait été déposée à ce
jour ;

•  N’ont répondu positivement à aucune des demandes de la mère pour
obtenir une aide financière ou juridictionnelle. 
 
 


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