UNAIDS chief says behavior of ex-staffer was ‘unacceptable’

By MARIA CHENG
AP Medical Writer

LONDON (AP) — The U.N. AIDS agency has acknowledged in an internal email last week that the behavior of a former senior staffer toward women was “unacceptable” and was tolerated by an organizational culture which allowed misconduct. It was the latest development of a sexual harassment scandal that led the agency’s previous leader to bow out early and resulted in the firing of two staffers. The missive appeared to be a veiled reference to Dr. Luiz Loures, an ex-deputy of UNAIDS, who allegedly forcibly kissed a staffer before trying to drag her out of a Bangkok hotel elevator. Loures denies the findings saying he never sexually harassed anyone.