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France's survivor of multiple assaults, Gisèle Pelicot, is returning to court this week to confront an individual convicted of assaulting her, the only man who is appealing against the prior year's court decision in which a group of 51 individuals were sentenced for attacking her as she was, under the influence, due to her spouse in their family home.

At the time, Madame Pelicot's public resistance was seen as a possible turning point in the struggle with sexual violence. However across the nation, that positive outlook looks to be diminishing.

"I am going to harm you if you don't leave now," growled a man standing outside a ancient place of worship in Mazan, the picturesque town where the individuals once lived.

He'd just overheard me questioning an older lady about the impact of the legal proceedings on the nation and, while threatening to destroy our recording device too, was now explaining that the town was fed up with being connected to one of the internationally recognized legal proceedings for assault.

Earlier in the week, the local official had issued a gentler version of the similar perspective, in a official announcement that described the survivor's extended trauma as "an individual issue… that has nothing to do with us."

One can well understand the leader's intention to safeguard the community's image and its tourism industry. However it is important to recognize that a previous period, he'd received coverage across France after he'd stated to me on two occasions, in an interview, that he wanted to "play down" the seriousness of the survivor's experiences because "there were no fatalities", and no children were involved.

Additionally it should be mentioned that nearly every one of the women we were able to interview in the town recently disagreed with the mayor's desire to view the legal matter as, mainly, something to "get past."

Having a smoke in a shaded doorway close to the religious building, a 33-year-old civil servant, who gave her name as the resident, expressed with open resentment.

"No-one talks about it anymore, including in this town. It's as if it never happened. I am aware of an individual suffering from domestic violence at this moment. Yet ladies keep it secret. They're afraid of the persons who commit these acts," she said, mentioning that she was "certain" that additional the assailants were still at large, and free, in the community.

Strolling in the vicinity by some felines soaking up the sun, another resident, in her late sixties, was similarly willing to discuss, but took a different view of the legal matter.

"Globally things are changing. France is evolving." With Madame Pelicot's help? "Certainly. It has provided encouragement, for women to talk without fear," she shared with me, assertively.

Across France, there is no doubt that the coverage spawned by Gisèle Pelicot's globally broadcast determination that "shame should change sides" - from the assaulted to the assailant – has given extra impetus to a effort targeting assault previously invigorated by the activist campaign.

"From my perspective changing behavior is something that requires decades. [But] the proceedings ignited a massive, unprecedented movement… opposing assault, and against impunity," stated a coordinator, who manages a network of 50 feminist organisations in France. "We're focused on educating specialists, aiding those affected, on inquiries."

"Certainly, the nation has transformed. The [number of] complaints of rapes has increased threefold, showing that those affected – ladies and young women – they speak up and they want justice," concurred a spokesperson, spokesperson for the group promoting gender equality.

And yet, the drive and positivity that overwhelmed the survivor the previous winter, as she left the Avignon courthouse and into a scrum of supporters, have not led to many meaningful reforms to the manner the French state addresses the matter of assault.

In fact, there is a near consensus among advocates and professionals that the situation is, in contrast, worsening.

"Regrettably, authorities are unresponsive," stated the advocate, highlighting data demonstrating that numbers of guilty verdicts are stagnating despite a significant increase in cases of assault.

"The situation is dire. There is resistance. Rape culture ideas are coming back very strongly. This is apparent through the masculinist movement becoming more prevalent, especially with adolescent males," continued the activist,