'Disgraceful' sex acts in parliament rock Australia's government
Leaked videos of staff from Australia's conservative government performing sex acts in parliament, including one man masturbating over a female MP's desk, left Scott Morrison's administration facing yet another major scandal Tuesday.
The prime minister -- already under pressure for his
handling of sexual assault allegations including that a female government
adviser was raped by a colleague -- called the behaviour
"disgraceful" and "absolutely shameful".
The videos and photos, which had allegedly been shared in a
group chat of coalition government staff before being leaked by a
whistleblower, were first revealed by The Australian newspaper and Channel 10
late Monday.
The graphic images have prompted fresh outrage from female
lawmakers and the Australian public, coming on the heels of the rape
allegations that sparked mass nationwide protests.
The whistleblower, identified only as Tom, told the news
outlets that government staffers and MPs often used a Parliament House prayer
room to have sex, and alleged that sex workers had been brought into the
building "for the pleasure of coalition MPs".
He also said a group of staffers routinely swapped explicit
photos of themselves and he received so many he had "become immune to
it".
He said there was a "culture of men thinking that they
can do whatever they want" and while he did not think the staffers had
broken any laws, "morally, they are bankrupt".
One aide was immediately fired and the government has
promised further action.
Minister for Women Marise Payne said the revelations were
"beyond disappointing" and highlighted the need for a
government-ordered inquiry into parliament's workplace culture.
Cabinet minister Karen Andrews said she had had an
"absolute gutful" of sexism in politics and her "conscience will
no longer allow me to remain quiet".
She told reporters in Canberra that the ruling Liberal Party
should consider gender quotas for its political representatives.
The fresh sexism revelations on Tuesday prompted Indigenous
Senator Lidia Thorpe to disclose alleged sexual harassment by four male
politicians since she took office just six months ago.
Thorpe, a representative for the Greens party, told the
Canberra Times the "brazen" harassment had included
"suggestive" remarks and unwanted touching.
"These are men that write our laws - men that should
know better," she tweeted. "What they've done is violating behaviour.
It's physical. It's sexualising, objectifying behaviour - it makes me feel
physically sick."
Australia's parliament has been repeatedly criticised for a
"toxic" workplace culture that has allegedly spawned persistent
bullying, harassment and sexual assault of women -- particularly in the ruling
coalition.
Former government staffer Brittany Higgins alleged publicly
last month that she had been raped by a colleague in a minister's parliamentary
office in 2019.
And earlier this month, Attorney-General Christian Porter
vigorously denied swirling accusations he had raped a 16-year-old girl in 1988
when they were both students.
The controversies have placed growing pressure on the prime
minister, who critics say has fumbled the government's response.
Morrison grew emotional at a press conference in Canberra on
Tuesday when talking about the importance of his wife, mother and daughters,
also saying women had endured a "very traumatic" month.
"These events have triggered, right across this building
and indeed right across the country, women who have put up with this rubbish
and this crap for their entire lives, as their mothers did, as their
grandmothers did," he said.
Tens of thousands of women this month joined
"#March4Justice" rallies to protest sexual violence and gender
inequality, calling for systemic change in politics and wider Australian
society.
The opposition Labor party, which already has gender quotas
in place, has not been immune from similar allegations. A Facebook group of female
workers recently detailed alleged sexual harassment by male colleagues and
politicians.
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