Hélène Cuenat (3 February 1931 – 18 May 2022) was a French anti-colonial activist, known as a "suitcase carrier" and member of the Jeanson network in support of the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN).
She actively participated in the Jeanson network, providing logistical support to the FLN against the official stance of the French Communist Party.
[1] On February 25, 1961, Cuenat successfully escaped from La Roquette prison in Paris along with five other members of the Jeanson network: Micheline Pouteau, Jacqueline Carré, Didar Fawzy-Rossano, Zina Haraigue, and Fatima Hamoud.
They sawed through the prison bars and used a makeshift rope made from nylon stockings, rags, electrical wire, and clothesline.
[9] Cuenat returned to France in 1976 and pursued a career in adult vocational training at the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers until her retirement in 1986.