Australian senator accuses fellow senator of sexual assault

Australian Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe withdrew comments she made accusing a conservative senator of sexual assault during a Senate session on Wednesday, June 14. Thorpe interrupted Liberal Party Senator David Van while he was addressing the chamber on a report on parliamentary workplaces sparked by reports bullying, sexual harassment and sexual assault. “I’m feeling really uncomfortable when a perpetrator is speaking,” Thorpe said when interrupting Van. When initially asked to withdraw her comments, Thorpe refused. “I can’t, because this person harassed me, sexually assaulted me,” she said. Citing parliamentary rules, she later withdrew the comments. In a statement, Van “unequivocally denied” Thorpe’s allegations. “These outrageous and reprehensible comments were made by Senator Thorpe using parliamentary privilege in the most malicious and despicable way,” Van said. Credit: Parliament of Australia via Storyful