In brief
Tariq Ramadan, a renowned Islamic scholar, has been sentenced to 18 years in prison by a Paris court for raping three women. The verdict comes after two of the women spoke out during the Me Too movement. The court condemned the acts as 'extremely serious,' reinforcing that consent to one act does not imply consent to another. Ramadan, who has denied all charges, was not present at the trial due to health concerns, and he plans to appeal the decision. The case brings to light the challenges facing survivors of sexual violence in seeking justice.
A court in Paris has sentenced prominent Islam scholar Tariq Ramadan to 18 years in jail for raping three women, two years after he was given a jail term for a separate rape offence in Switzerland. The French rape case unfolded in 2017, when two of the three women came forward during the Me Too campaign against sexual abuse and harassment.Ramadan, a 63-year-old former professor of Islamic studies at St Antony's College in Oxford, did not attend the trial in Paris, although he has always denied the charges. His lawyers said he was being treated in the Swiss city of Geneva for multiple sclerosis and condemned the trial as a farce. Judge Corinne Goetzmann told the court that a warrant had been issued for Ramadan's arrest; however, Switzerland does not have an extradition treaty with its neighbour. Ramadan is also facing a permanent ban from French territory.The court ruled that the 18-year jail term was justified by the 'extreme seriousness of the acts'. Judge Goetzmann stated, 'Consenting to sex does not imply consenting to any sexual act whatsoever.' One of the victims, Henda Ayari, expressed relief that the judges believed her after 'nine years of suffering and struggle' since coming forward. Ayari had previously described a traumatic incident involving Ramadan in a hotel room.The second woman who testified reported being raped by Ramadan in a hotel in Lyon in 2009, while the Swiss case involved a Geneva hotel incident in 2008. Throughout the proceedings, Ramadan has insisted on his innocence, asserting that he is a victim of political slander aimed at silencing a Muslim intellectual. He has requested a new trial, claiming health issues prevented his attendance and that he would not have engaged legal representation if he did not wish to defend himself. The path ahead for Ramadan remains uncertain, as the involvement of an arrest warrant complicates the prospect of a retrial.
