Moreno blasted for saying women only report harassment when it comes from ugly men

Feb 2, 2020 | 6 comments

Ecuador’s president has apologized for saying women only report sexual harassment “when it comes from an ugly man.” His comments at a conference in Guayaquil on Friday sparked an uproar online.

President Lenin Moreno at weekend conference in Guayaquil.

At the same event Lenin Moreno also said that men faced the constant threat of being falsely accused of harassment by women. As the backlash mounted, he tweeted that he “did not intend to minimize an issue as serious as violence or abuse.”

“I apologize if it was understood that way,” he added. “I reject violence against women in all its forms!”

Addressing the conference in Guayaquil, President Moreno had said that men are permanently subjected to the danger of being accused of harassment. “Women often report harassment, it is true, and it is good that they do so,” he went on, before claiming that women often “get angry with ugly people” in harassment cases.

“That is to say, it is ‘harassment’ when it comes from an ugly person,” he said. “But if the person is good looking… they usually do not think it is harassment.” After footage of the speech was shared online, the president’s comments attracted widespread criticism.

One Twitter user wrote: “According to Lenin Moreno women only report harassment when the perpetrator is ‘ugly’. Now it makes sense why they cut $876,000 from the budget for the prevention of gender violence: for this lot our lives our worthless.”

Another added: “We are governed by a misogynist!”

Moreno’s predecessor, Rafael Correa, also came under attack from women’s and gay rights advocate for saying he didn’t have time to for “silly movements” that distracted from the larger fight for human rights.
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Credit: BBC, www.bbc.com

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