Reporting of sexual assault and rape in France has risen by nearly a third since the Harvey Weinstein scandal, the interior ministry said Thursday.

Statistics released Thursday show the number of lawsuits for rape rose by 17.9 percent in the last quarter of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016. Lawsuits filed for other sexual crimes, including sexual harassment, rose by 31.5 percent. Over 80 percent of the victims were women.

Interior minister Gerard Collomb made the link with Weinstein case on Europe 1 radio Thursday, saying it had the effect of "freeing speech" and that victims are "hesitating less to file lawsuits."

"One can see the effect of reporting of possibly older incidents in the context of women speaking out following the revelations of the 'Weinstein' affair," he said.

The allegations engulfing Weinstein triggered a deluge of accounts of sexual assault and harassment in France, with victims using the #Metoo or #balancetonporc (Squeal on your pig) hashtags to break their silence.

The movement was hailed for shining a light on a culture of permissiveness towards unwanted advances.

But it has also been divisive, with some women, including film star Catherine Deneuve, complaining it had turned into an anti-male "witch hunt".