Brazil President Lula fires minister accused of sexual harassment
Brazil's President
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday fired his human rights minister, Silvio
Almeida, following claims that he sexually harassed several women, including a
cabinet colleague.
The scandal, which
caused outrage in Brazil, is the first of its kind involving a member of Lula's
government since the veteran leftist returned to power last year.
"Given the grave
accusations against minister Silvio Almeida and after summoning him for a
conversation... President Lula decided to remove the head of the human rights
and citizenship ministry," the presidency said in a statement.
"The president
considers the possibility of the minister remaining in office untenable given
the nature of the allegations," the statement added.
"It will give me
a chance to prove my innocence and recover from this," he said.
The Metropoles news
site reported on Thursday that the women's association Me Too Brasil had received
complaints against Almeida from several women, including Racial Equality
Minister Anielle Franco.
Me Too Brasil
confirmed the report and said that the women in question had "received
psychological and legal support."
The federal police
said Friday it would investigate the claims and the presidential ethics
commission said it too had launched an inquiry.
Almeida, a 48-year-old
lawyer and university professor who is considered one of Brazil's leading
intellectuals, had earlier rejected the allegations as "lies" aimed
at tarnishing the image of "a black man who occupies a prominent position
in public office."
Franco, 40, is also
black.
Writing on Instagram
after Almeida's dismissal, she said that it was "unacceptable to downplay
or diminish acts of violence" and praised Lula's "forceful
action."
Welcoming the
expressions of solidarity she had received, she added: "We know how much
women and girls suffer from harassment every day, at work, in public transport,
in schools and at home."
- 'I felt ashamed'
-
On Friday, the UOL news
site published the account of one of Almeida's accusers, a university professor
who said the minister groped her during a meal in 2019, in front of around 15
people.
"There were a lot
of people, I was wearing a skirt and I remember his hand on my private
parts," she said, adding: "I felt ashamed."
Before meeting Almeida
on Friday Lula issued a stern warning about possible cases of sexual harassment
in his team.
"What I can say
is that whoever practices harassment cannot remain in government," he told
Brazil's Difusora Goiania radio station while emphasizing Almeida's right to
the presumption of innocence.
On Thursday, the
government had acknowledged the "seriousness" of the claims levelled
at the minister and vowed that they would be treated "with the rigour and
speed that situations of possible violence against women demand."
Almedia's wife, Edneia
Carvalho, with whom he has a one-year-old daughter, described the claims
against the minister as "unfair" and "absurd" on Instagram.
While this is the
first scandal involving alleged sexual misconduct by a member of Lula's
government, it is not the first time one of his ministers has been accused of a
crime.
In June, the federal
police recommended that Communications Minister Juscelino Filho be indicted
for corruption and consorting with criminals.
Filho denied the
allegations and so far has kept his job.
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