The professor of Mathematics grade 5 of the University of the Republic (UdelaR), Martín Sambarino, accused in 2019 of having sexually abused a student, sued the university for $5 million for the damages caused by the internal investigation that “will go down in history for its monumental illegitimacy”indicated Sambarino in the lawsuit to which he agreed The Observer. Sambarino filed a claim for patrimonial reparation.
“After the administrative activity denounced here, my life was ruined. I suffered malicious gossip and suspicion. I suffered the harshest attacks from the media, social networks and even well-intentioned people from the academic environment, who gave credit to the hoax that was threw me”lamented the professor, who was investigated by the UdelaR after receiving a complaint of sexual abuse, which was published by the Search Weekly in September 2019.
The postgraduate student, Adriana da Luz, denounced the professor, with whom she shared a stay in an apartment in France, in 2019, alleging that the professor had a “highly inappropriate” attitude during one night, when he wanted to hug her. When she refused, he added he, He stopped correcting her thesis and stopped attending her work meetings.
May 31, 2022 the Central Board of Directors (CDC) of the University of the Republic (Udelar) concluded by majority that Sambarino committed inappropriate behavior while he was Da Luz’s thesis tutor, and described the offense as serious, but He rejected the motion to dismiss the official.
Now the issue returns to the Faculty of Sciences, which was the one that had requested the dismissal of the teacher. The faculty can sanction you with up to six months of suspension.
Prior investigation without access to evidence
In the complaint, Sambarino denounced a host of irregularities in the Central Commission on Violence, Harassment and Discrimination (Ccpaad) of the UdelaRin charge of investigate and decide if the case should go to summarythrough two reports: one from a “subcommittee” that, according to Sambarino’s defense, did not exist, and another from a “technical team.”
The complaint states that this team was poorly shaped and was not interdisciplinarybecause they worked on it two psychologists (only one in some sessions), and even one of its three members was not part of Ccpaad. The report of this team was taken as its own and conclusive by the Ccpaad to make recommendations to the educational body without carrying out a pertinent analysis of the generated documents, the lawsuit says.
“All the signatories of my ‘conviction’, when testifying in the summary at my request, they confessed not having witnessed a single one of the investigative activities undertaken, but they handed over all that activity to the Degree in Psychology Silvia Francowho -for worse- did not document their actions in any way”criticized the Mathematics teacher.
Franco, whom Sambarino described as the member of the technical team that leaked the information to the mediawas also charged with grade 5 hide “testimonies from many members of the Mathematical Community” in the report.
The professor also accused those responsible for the Commission for not allowing him access to the evidence of the case and not letting him testify after the collection of evidence. “Is about a previous investigation that was not such. The procedure that preceded the summary was labeled “administrative investigation” but, clearly, had an accused subject“, says the brief presented by Sambarino.
Reservation and confidentiality
for defense “there was a blatant violation of the duty of secrecy and confidentiality”. “It should have been a secret, but what was broadcast live by the mediawhich was due exclusively to the fact that the administration did not properly protect the reservation“, keep going.
This duty is linked to presumption of innocenceand Sambarino pointed out that the principle was also violated when the Ccpaad informed the dean of the Faculty of Sciences, Mónica Martín, about the investigation.
According to a report requested by the defense from the lawyer specialized in sexual harassment Marina Morelli, the members of the Ccpaad They did not know what the duty of secrecy and confidentiality was about, nor did they inform the Udelar authorities about the leak to the press.
After the information was made public in the media, the professor stated that the public institution “He did not proceed to carry out the necessary investigations to determine if there were officials responsible for the crime”nor reported the facts.
Moral damage
The 5th grade teacher accuses having suffered a “moral damage” for the actions of Udelar officials in the complaint. “My honor, reputation, self-esteem and good name were destroyed by the sole circumstance that the defendant did not act in accordance with the principle of objective legality”Sambarino said.
“I was no longer invited to participate in any international event. Since mid-2019 I stopped participating -in any way- in any Mathematical Event or Congress or Convention, of which I was usually a central speaker. What’s more, I stopped taking exams , integrate Commissions or Insolvency Courts, and I was removed from all co-government activities”added the teacher, who described himself as a “official without tasks”.
As for the money claimed, Sambarino justified it due to the “few years to come of teaching practice” that he has leftand that it is “obvious” that you will not be able to “get up” from this situationso that his withdrawal will be surrounded “by scandal and malicious accusation” of “a parody of procedure” that “should never ever be tolerated in a state of law.”
