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The nation's individual subjected to numerous attacks, Gisèle Pelicot, is reappearing before the judiciary this week to come face-to-face with a perpetrator found guilty, the lone defendant who is challenging the prior year's court decision in which a group of 51 individuals were sentenced for attacking her as she rested, sedated, by her husband in their domicile.

During that period, Madame Pelicot's defiant public stance was viewed as a potentially catalytic moment in the battle against assault. Yet within the country, that positive outlook looks to be diminishing.

"I will attack you if you don't leave now," growled a individual located by a historic church in Mazan, the charming locale where the individuals once lived.

He'd just overheard me asking an elderly woman about the effect of the Pelicot case on France and, while threatening to destroy our camera too, was now clarifying that the community was fed up with being connected to one of the world's most notorious sexual assault cases.

A few days earlier, the mayor of Mazan had issued a gentler version of the identical viewpoint, in a public statement that depicted Gisèle Pelicot's years-long ordeal as "an individual issue… that has no connection to our community."

It is easy to comprehend the leader's desire to protect his town's reputation and its visitor sector. Yet it should be pointed out that a year earlier, he'd garnered attention across France after he'd stated to me on two occasions, in an discussion, that he aimed to "downplay" the gravity of the individual's trauma because "no-one was killed", and youth were not affected.

Additionally it should be mentioned that almost all the female residents we did speak to in the town recently did not share the mayor's desire to view the legal matter as, mainly, something to "leave behind."

Lighting up in a shadowed entrance not far from the church, a government worker, who gave her name as Aurélie, communicated with open resentment.

"No-one talks about it anymore, within this community. It appears to be forgotten. I am acquainted with a person experiencing family abuse at this moment. Yet ladies keep it secret. They are scared of the individuals who commit these acts," she said, adding that she was "convinced" that more of the attackers remained undetected, and unapprehended, in the community.

Moving through the area by some felines soaking up the sun, a different individual, in her late sixties, was similarly willing to discuss, but took a different view of the legal matter.

"Globally things are changing. The nation is developing." Due to the survivor's actions? "Certainly. It has provided encouragement, for women to express themselves openly," she informed me, assertively.

Across France, there is no doubt that the coverage produced by Gisèle Pelicot's worldwide shared determination that "the stigma ought to shift" - from the assaulted to the assailant – has provided added momentum to a campaign against assault already energised by the activist campaign.

"I would say altering conduct is something that takes generations. [But] the proceedings sparked a significant, landmark initiative… opposing assault, and against impunity," stated Alyssa Ahrabare, who co-ordinates a coalition of 50 feminist organisations in the nation. "We're focused on training professionals, aiding those affected, on inquiries."

"Absolutely, the country has evolved. The reports of assaults has tripled, demonstrating that survivors – females of all ages – they voice their experiences and they want justice," affirmed an advocate, voice of the NGO "Dare to be feminist".

However, the vigor and hope that engulfed Gisèle Pelicot at the end of the year, as she exited the courtroom and into a group of backers, have failed to result in many significant alterations to the way the national government handles the issue of sexual violence.

Indeed, there is a near consensus among advocates and professionals that conditions are, rather, declining.

"Unfortunately, the government does not react," commented Céline Piques, citing statistics indicating that rates of successful prosecutions are stagnating despite a significant increase in cases of assault.

"The outlook is grim. There is a backlash. Beliefs enabling abuse are coming back very strongly. This is evident in the male-centric groups becoming more prevalent, notably within youth," noted the activist,