A prominent Australian politician – in comments she has now withdrawn – alleged she was “harassed” and “sexually assaulted” by a fellow senator, who denied the allegations in a tense parliamentary exchange.
Speaking in the Senate on Wednesday, independent Lidia Thorpe objected to conservative senator David Van addressing politicians about rape allegations involving another man that was made by former parliamentary staffer Brittany Higgins.
Rising to her feet to interject, Thorpe told the chamber “I’m feeling really uncomfortable when a perpetrator is speaking”, leaving fellow senators aghast.
Asked to retract the statement – protected from Australia’s severe defamation laws by parliamentary privilege – Thorpe refused.
“I can’t, because this person harassed me, sexually assaulted me,” she said. “To have him talking about this today is an absolute disgrace.”
Van appeared shaken as he was invited to continue his remarks.
“I utterly reject that statement, that disgusting statement, outright. It is just a lie and I reject it,” he said. “It’s just not true.”
Thorpe returned to the chamber later, following the intervention of the Senate president, and withdrew the remarks, adding that she would be making a “further statement” on Thursday.
Sexual harassment and bullying are widespread
A 2021 government-backed inquiry found that sexual harassment and bullying were widespread in Australia’s parliament, affecting both politicians and staff.
One in three people working in parliament at the time said they “have experienced some form of sexual harassment while working there”.
Since 2021, Australian politics has been roiled by high-profile allegations of assault and harassment inside parliament.
At that time, former political aide Higgins alleged that a fellow conservative staffer raped her on a couch in a cabinet minister’s parliamentary office following a night of heavy drinking in March 2019.
The man in question has sued multiple journalists for reporting on the case and threatened to sue his accuser. He denied the allegations and in court pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual intercourse without consent.
Five separate investigations followed, collectively delivering a scathing indictment on the frequently sexist nature of Australian politics.
The case sparked nationwide protests and a court case that was eventually judged to be a mistrial and not retried because of the risk to Higgins’ mental health.
