Death of Philippine: Taha O.'s first victim has her own idea about the OQTF's flaws in repeat offenses

In a poignant letter, a victim of the suspect in Philippine's murder spoke out on Sunday. She wants a commission of inquiry to be launched on “preventing recidivism in cases of sexual crimes.”

In a letter addressed to AFP, a previous victim of the main suspect in Philippine's murder, Taha Oualidat (already convicted of rape in 2021) spoke out this Sunday, September 29. Written after Philippine's death, it highlights in particular the administrative dysfunctions of the obligations to leave French territory (OQTF) as well as the failures in the care of rapists to prevent reoffending. This young woman who wished to remain anonymous was raped by Taha O., during an assault in 2019 in the forest of Taverny (Val-d'Oise). She had filed a complaint quickly, and her attacker had been sentenced to seven years in prison.

The “dysfunction” of the OQTF must not “obliterate the question of repeat offenses”

“Why was this escalation of violence not stopped, leading to the murder of a young woman ?”, the editor asks. At the heart of the debate is the knowledge of the aggressor's profile. “My aggressor was sentenced to almost the maximum penalty for this type of crime committed by a minor and was incarcerated. Immediately after his release, he allegedly reoffended. and committed the irreparable (…) The dangerousness of Taha O. was known. A man who rapes a woman is dangerous. Whether he is unknown to his victim or her husband, whether he is foreign or French, whether the rape took place in a forest or in a marital apartment. Rape is a crime. It is the radical of violence, it contains within it a negation of the other, of his right to be and to exist”, she explains in a poignant story. But that's not all, the young woman does not avoid the OQTF from which her attacker should have been removed. She even mentions it several times in her letter, on the other hand, she questions herself and invites society to become aware of the support that could be put in place to avoid this kind of recurrence.

The order to leave French territory that had been issued against the attacker of this young woman was not carried out. “The reasons for this malfunction will have to be clarified and these flaws corrected,” she says. The “dysfunction” of the OQTF must not, however, “obliterate the fundamental question of recidivism”. "What recidivism prevention measures are planned and actually implemented in detention centers ? What is the impact of detention in reducing the risk of recidivism ? What support programs for reintegration are planned ?", she asks.  Questions that resonate all the more strongly after the death of Philippine, aged 19. "It seems essential to me that we collectively question the effectiveness of the means put in place and those to be created so that what happened does not happen again”, warns the young woman.

“I hope that an investigation commission will be launched”

“Even if this OQTF had been respected, what international cooperation mechanisms exist to prevent the recurrence of sexist and sexual crimes by deported criminals ? Our fraternity, our humanism, cannot stop at the gates of our borders,” she continues. In her letter, Taha O.'s first victim makes a proposal to try to close the loopholes in the racket that still persist regarding sexual and sexist crimes: “I would like to see the launch of a commission of inquiry into the prevention of recidivism “in cases of sexual and gender-based crimes,” she says, like a message in a bottle, perhaps for the political leaders and the justice system that must now shed light on Philippine's murder.