Independent Senator Lydia Thorpe tearfully said in a speech to the Senate that she had been subjected to “sexual comments” and “groped inappropriately,” according to AFP.
On Wednesday, Thorpe accused a fellow senator of “sexually assaulting” her, before forcing her to withdraw her statement under threat of parliamentary sanction.
On Thursday, Thorpe repeated her accusations against Conservative David Vann, who has vigorously denied the accusations.
Fan said that these accusations “destroyed and hurt him,” stressing to local media that they were “absolutely untrue,” according to AFP.
The Liberal Party, to which Fan belongs, suspended his membership because of the accusations.
Thorpe said Van involved lawyers in the matter and had to reformulate her case to make it easier to pass through the parliamentary rules.
“I was afraid to go out of the office door,” she told lawmakers.
And she continued, “It was necessary for someone to accompany me whenever I walked inside this building.”
“I know there are other people who went through a similar experience and didn’t talk about it in the interest of their careers,” she said.
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