The Minister of Racial Equality, Anielle Franco, reported to government members that she had been sexually harassed by the Minister of Human Rights and Citizenship, Silvio Almeida. When approached by the column in June, Anielle neither confirmed nor denied the episode, preventing the case from going public at that time.

According to her interlocutors, the minister did not want to turn the case into a public scandal so as not to harm the Lula government. She was approached by more than one journalist during the period but chose to remain silent and did not formally report the incident. The minister denies "with absolute vehemence" the accusations.

"I reject such accusations with the strength of the love and respect I have for my wife and my beloved one-year-old daughter, in the midst of the daily fight I lead for human rights and citizenship in this country," says Silvio Almeida in a statement.

The head of the department says he will notify the General Comptroller's Office, the Ministry of Justice, and the Prosecutor General's Office "so they can conduct a careful investigation of the case."

"Any and all complaints should be investigated with the full rigor of the law, but for that, the facts need to be exposed to be examined and processed, and not based solely on lies, without evidence," he continues. "I confess that it is very sad to live through all of this; it pains the soul. Once again, there is a group trying to erase and diminish our existences, attributing to me behaviors they practice. With this, Brazil loses, the human rights agenda loses, racial equality loses, and the Brazilian people lose."

This Thursday (5th), the Metrópoles website reported the case, stating that it had spoken to 14 people, including ministers, government advisers, and friends of Anielle Franco. Anielle is the sister of Marielle Franco, a city councilor murdered in Rio de Janeiro in 2018.