A story with real and deeply disturbing contours so many French institutional world. Some 250 women have sued a former human resources manager at the Ministry of Culture, alleging he carried out the administration in secret. strong diuretic, sometimes even drugs, during professional interviews. A systematic behavior, lasting almost a decade, that would lead to situations of serious physical and psychological distress. Now the French justice system is being asked to clarify one of the most disturbing cases in recent years.
From professional dreams to nightmares
Among the witnesses were Sylvie Delezennemarketing expert from Lille. In 2015, when he received a message on LinkedIn from a ministry leader, he thought his career was about to reach the point he had been waiting for. An interview invitation in Paris, he said today, seemed like a great opportunity for him. Rather, it is the beginning of a humiliating and traumatic experience.
Sylvie is just one of many women who are speaking out publicly today, after years of silence and guilt, convinced at the time that they were the ones who did it.inadequate” or “Sick”, without imagining the inconvenience it will cause deliberately.
Accusations against the official
At the center of the criminal investigation is Christian Negredirector of the ministry for almost twenty years. According to testimony, the man offered the candidate tea or coffee faked with illegal diuretics that work very quickly. A few minutes after drinking it, the women felt an urgent need to urinate, just as the man took them for a walk outdoors, on a path designed away from the toilet.
Many describe the same dynamic: an interview suddenly moves to the street; increased discomfort; requests for a “technical break” were ignored; feelings of shame and loss of control; in some cases, episodes of incontinence in public.
Some said they were forced to do so look for desperate to go to a bar or club, too late to reach the bathroom. Victims recalled the man’s gaze, which was often described as cold, caring, almost arrogant. “It felt like an adult talking to a little girl.”
One of the women recalled an episode emblematic: After several minutes of increasing urgency, he asked the official to return to the office. Instead he walked in the opposite direction and asked her while looking into her eyes: “Do you need to urinate?“The tone is considered childish, paternalistic and disturbing.”At the time – said the woman – the red warning light tells me something is wrong“.
The discovery of the “experiment” sheet.
The case would have remained in the shadows if he had not had a colleague in 2018 reported Nègre for other inappropriate behavior: he tried to photograph an official’s feet. During the search, police found a document startling: a piece of paper on which the man records the time, reactions, and alleged “effects” of a given substance. At the top, there were disturbing words: “Experiment”.
This discovery opened the first investigation and led to Nègre’s dismissal from the ministry. In 2019 he officially became a manager indicted for the administration of narcotic substances, sexual violence and other crimes. Even so, he continues to work in the private sector while awaiting trial.
A case that revealed another scandal
This new testimony emerges in the context of a broader reflection on drug-facilitated violence. In France, the most famous case is the case Gisele Pelicotwho chose to make her name public in the trial of dozens of men accused of raping her while she was being knocked unconscious by her ex-husband.
Shame, failure and a hurt life
Testimonies gathered by French and international media reveal the same wounds: the shame felt; self-blame (“I thought I had done something wrong,” many people said); the shame that kept them silent for years; Psychological impact on career and self-esteem.
Some women get compensation in civil court, but the Ministry of Culture is not directly responsible. For many others, justice is yet to come.
A process that has been anticipated for years
Despite numerous testimonies, a trial has not yet taken place famous. The victims asked for faster time and a clear stance from the state, considering that the incident allegedly occurred within a public institution.
What emerges from this story is
the vulnerability of the job seeker who finds himself, even just for an interview, in a position of dependence and trust. A belief that, it was alleged, Nègre exploited in the most cruel and cruel manner manipulative.
