Australian PM Scott Morrison stands by minister accused of raping woman in 1980s
An anonymous letter accusing the unnamed minister of rape was sent to the PM’s office
Australian prime minister Scott Morrison has defended an unnamed cabinet minister accused of raping a 16-year-old girl more than 30 years ago amid calls for the minister’s resignation.
An anonymous letter sent to the prime minister’s office and three female legislators contained a statement from a woman alleging that the minister raped her in New South Wales in 1988.
The woman, who has not been publicly named, took her own life in June at the age of 49 after reporting the allegation to police.
The claims have cast a dark cloud over the 16 men in Mr Morrison’s 22-minister cabinet. But the PM dismissed the possibility of firing the unnamed minister, whom he said “vigorously and completely denied the allegations”.
“We can’t have a situation where the mere making of an allegation and that being publicised through the media is grounds for ... governments to stand people down,” he said.
Mr Morrison added that he forwarded the letter to police and discussed the allegation with the federal police commissioner and that he does not intend to take any further action.
Australian Labor Party senator Penny Wong, who also received anonymous letters about the 1988 allegation, said she met the complainant in 2019 and listened to her account.
“I facilitated her referral to rape support services and confirmed she was being supported in reporting the matter to NSW Police,” she said.
She added that the minister was not in parliament in 1988.
Greens Party senator Sarah Hanson-Young, another of the letter’s recipients, and Michael Bradley, who represented the complainant when she reported her allegation to the police, both called for an independent investigation into the alleged incident and for the minister to step down.
An official police investigation, which would require the minister to “stand aside” for its duration according to Australia’s ministerial code, is unlikely because the complainant is dead.
The allegation comes just two weeks after Mr Morrison apologised to a former government staffer who alleges she was raped by a senior colleague two years ago.
Three other women have since joined Brittany Higgins in making sexual misconduct allegations against the man, who was fired for a security breach.