Using the politics of sexual scandal is dangerous for all involved no matter how serious the allegation or the justification for calling prime ministers, ministers or any MP or senator to account.
Political manoeuvres using sexual scandal mean all politicians lose, not just those accused of hiding scandal, covering up and failing any victims but also those who seek to gain advantage.
Scott Morrison and the Liberal Party have been caught ill-prepared to answer the charges of Anthony Albanese’s Labor this week because there was not a political preparation and there was a failure to recognise the potential for a sexual assault claim to consume the government.
Labor latched on to the revelations and quickly moved into the scandal exploitation mode of demanding “who knew what when? Who had done what when? Or why hadn’t they?” and argued for action for more protection for employees in parliament.
The responses were not clear; there seemed to be faults of management and care and the Prime Minister’s personal feelings and vows of action were belittled in an atmosphere of scepticism and media heat.
Morrison needed to clarify the Liberal response and message, sort out contradictions, take solid action and limit the avenues of pursuit. On Wednesday, he started to sort that out and Labor even started to spend more time on questions about the economy and industrial relations.
There are protocols in place for handling sexual assault or harassment in the workplace and employers are bound to follow them if the victim does not wish to take further action and wishes privacy to be protected.
But when there are demands for victims to be believed, a clearly distraught young woman and politicians prepared to run the risk of two-edged swords, there is still room for more damage to Morrison, who must absorb the attacks.
The sexual scandal surrounding the terrible circumstances of former Liberal ministerial staffer Brittany Higgins is self-evidently terrible and has clearly taken a toll on the young woman.
Higgins has accused Morrison of “victim blaming” and said the Coalition government “has questions to answer for their own conduct” over her treatment after an alleged rape just before the 2019 election in the parliamentary office of Liberal frontbencher Linda Reynolds, then defence industry minister.
Despite her pleas for privacy, her alleged rape and subsequent trauma, Higgins’s experience and campaign for “other victims” has become a totally public and political affair.
Tawdry details have been mercilessly publicised, addressing the “toxic culture” of parliament house and giving it national priority.
Hours of parliamentary time and days of media attention have ensured that this incident will enter the long history of sordid sexual scandals over the decades that have tarnished the politics of all sides.
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