The historic environmentalist Santiago Martin Barajasone of the founders of Ecologists in Actionhas been reported for a sexual assault on a woman, according to what has been announced ElDiario.es and EL PAÍS has been able to confirm. The events under investigation occurred at the end of July. The environmental entity – one of the five largest in Spain – indicates that it had not received complaints in this case, which is why it has initiated an internal investigation and has removed Martín Barajas, who for two decades had no organic responsibilities, for the duration. the procedure. The accused denies the facts: “I have never attacked any woman.”
According to ElDiario.esand EL PAÍS has confirmed, the complaint states that the complainant met with the environmentalist and he declared himself to her. “He surrounded my waist and rushed towards me kissing me, I quickly withdrew saying not to continue there, to leave me, my body became alert and I began to sweat very nervously. He then insisted and told me that he was satisfied with us lying naked in bed without doing anything (…) To my surprise, he touched my breast, caressed my mouth and continued hugging me, it made me feel terribly disgusted,” he always said. according to the version of this digital medium. The woman then filed a complaint, while the doctor at the health center who treated her also sent an injury report.
The complainant explains to EL PAÍS that she had not seen Martín Barajas for years and that she has no relationship with him. He has been undergoing medical and psychological treatment since the day the events allegedly occurred and assures that he “feels well.” He highlights the good care he received from 016 and his family doctor. “For me, the French woman Gisèle Pélicot (whom her husband drugged so that other men could rape her) was an example because the time coincided and I thought that if I was able to tell what had happened to her, I had to do it, because, furthermore, I am a mother, and to think that there are men like that… I drew strength from other women,” she maintains. The most important thing for her is that when a complaint of this type is filed, “they treat you well, that they understand you and listen to you.”
Martín Barajas, 62, confirms to EL PAÍS that he stayed with the woman, whom he had not seen for years, but denies the accusations: “The complaint is totally false, a setup, I have never attacked any woman” . Sources from the Superior Court of Justice of Madrid (TSJM) explain that there is a procedure in the Investigation Court number 6 of Arganda del Rey, although they cannot provide the name of the accused. “This person is going to testify on October 30,” they say from the TSJM, reports Patricia Peiró.
“We are absolutely baffled, we were not aware of anything similar,” says Carmen Duce, Organization coordinator of the environmental entity. “At Ecologistas en Acción we have protocols against sexual and workplace harassment that are put in place when there are internal complaints of inappropriate behavior. However, in this case there has been no internal complaint, we have learned about the facts through the media,” he adds.
Duce points out that the entity has launched the protocol to carry out an internal investigation with all the guarantees, to find out why it has not been detected before. “We take it very seriously.” Later, in a statement, they specified: “In this investigation process we are going to have external and expert help, in order to avoid possible biases derived from our personal relationships, in an extremely delicate and painful topic, and given the seriousness of the facts that are reported.” In addition, the spokesperson points out that they have spoken with Martín Barajas, who has had no internal charges for more than two decades, and they have asked him to step aside while the investigation lasts.
Santiago Martín Barajas was one of the founders of Ecologistas en Acción and its first general coordinator, elected in 1998. He held the position until 2002. The conservation organization, one of the best known in Spain, began its journey with the union of some 300 groups environmental defenders after years of contacts in which the accused was involved. One of the best-known actions of Martín Barajas, agronomist and environmental consultant, is the impetus for the renaturalization of the Manzanares Riverin Madrid, which has managed to return the fauna and flora to the riverbed after years without life.
Telephone 016 assists victims of sexist violence, their families and those around them 24 hours a day, every day of the year, in 53 different languages. The number is not registered on the telephone bill, but the call must be deleted from the device. You can also contact via email [email protected] and by WhatsApp at the number 600 000 016. Minors can contact the ANAR Foundation telephone number 900 20 20 10. If it is an emergency situation, you can call 112 or the National Police telephone numbers (091) and the Civil Guard (062). And if you cannot call, you can use the ALERTCOPS application, from which an alert signal is sent to the Police with geolocation.
