00:03Hello and welcome to the Cube, Euronews' fact-checking show.
00:07The murder of 11-year-old schoolgirl Liana has sparked outrage across France,
00:12given that authorities failed to properly investigate her suspected killer
00:16who faced prior child sexual assault allegations.
00:19Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has since instructed prosecutors
00:23to review some 70,000 outstanding cases involving child sexual abuse
00:28before the 14th of July.
00:30The feasibility of this ambitious plan has been called into question,
00:34given that France is one of the lowest numbers of professional judges in Europe.
00:38The 70,000 cases would mean reviewing around 14,000 per week on average,
00:43or more than 2,000 per working day.
00:46The Ministry of Justice maintains that this target is achievable,
00:49given that in theory these cases should already be underway.
00:52They told us that cases involving children who are still minors will be prioritised,
00:56but said that a specific task force would not be mobilised to support the review.
01:01French criminal lawyers and unions shared their views with us.
01:04J'ai très très peur qu'en réalité ce soit bâclé,
01:06et que des dossiers qui mériteraient qu'on les étudie précisément soient laissés pour compte.
01:12Another lawyer warned the mass review could stall cases
01:15which do not concern child sexual abuse,
01:17unless the judiciary receives a major budget boost or procedural reform.
01:22He said the drive could spark new investigations,
01:24but that it would likely not significantly increase trials or convictions.
01:28Unions have denounced a smokescreen operation.
01:31Ça nous paraît vraiment illusoire de penser que tous les procureurs en charge des mineurs
01:37vont pouvoir faire un examen précis, exhaustif et donc sérieux de ces procédures en si peu de temps.
01:45While the government is optimistic about the mass review,
01:48the opinions of the unions and lawyers we spoke to
01:51range from cautiously optimistic to outrightly sceptical.
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