![\"Armando](\"https:\/\/cdn.ghana-mma.com\/2019\/06\/02055509-696x447.jpg\" "\\"Armando")
<\/div>A Mexican rock star was found dead Mon"},"modified":"2019-06-23T08:30:19","modified_gmt":"2019-06-23T08:30:19","slug":"musician-commits-suicide-after-metoo-accusation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2019\/06\/23\/musician-commits-suicide-after-metoo-accusation\/","title":{"rendered":"Musician commits suicide after #MeToo accusation"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
![\"Armando](\"https:\/\/cdn.ghanamma.com\/2019\/06\/02055509-696x447.jpg\" "\\"Armando")
<\/div>\nA Mexican rock star was found dead Monday after tweeting that he planned to kill himself in a \u201cradical declaration of innocence\u201d after being accused of sexual harassment by the country\u2019s #MeToo movement.<\/p>\n
Armando Vega Gil, 63, the bassist for veteran rock band Botellita de Jerez (Little Bottle of Sherry), died early Monday, the group said on Twitter. A prosecution source confirmed Vega had been found dead at his Mexico City home, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to discuss the investigation.<\/p>\n
Vega\u2019s death poured new fuel on a fiery debate over #MeToo in Mexico. The movement has triggered a flood of sexual assault accusations against journalists, academics, writers and others in the cultural sphere in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
Vega posted a note on Twitter shortly before his death saying he was taking his own life in reaction to an anonymous accusation that he sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl more than a decade ago.<\/p>\n
The accusation was made the previous night on the Twitter account @MeTooMusicaMX, part of Mexico\u2019s nascent but increasingly powerful #MeToo movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cI categorically deny this accusation,\u201d tweeted Vega, who was also an award-winning poet and writer.<\/p>\n
He wrote that he feared the accusation would end his career, and that he would not be able to defend himself on social media, where \u201canything I say will be used against me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that he wanted to spare his eight-year-old son from \u201csuffering the effects of this false accusation against me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI must clarify that my death is not a confession of guilt. On the contrary, it is a radical declaration of innocence,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u2013 Debate over anonymous accusers \u2013<\/strong><\/p>\n Vega was a founding member of Botellita de Jerez, a band formed in the 1980s that fused rock with traditional Mexican sounds and slang.<\/p>\n His accuser said he befriended her some 13 years ago, when she was a 13-year-old aspiring musician and he was 50.<\/p>\n She said he invited her to his home and made a series of unwanted sexual advances, including telling her he wanted to teach her to kiss.<\/p>\n She ultimately severed ties with him.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one. It terrifies me to know that other people probably weren\u2019t as lucky as me and fell into his perverse trap,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n The #MeToo movement gained little traction in Mexico when it burst onto the international scene in 2017 with a series of sexual assault accusations against powerful Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.<\/p>\n But in recent weeks, the movement has made major waves in the worlds of Mexican music, journalism, publishing and universities.<\/p>\n The list of #MeToo Mexico profiles on Twitter also includes accounts where photographers, writers, journalists, creative professionals and academics can accuse powerful figures in their fields of sexual harassment and assault.<\/p>\n The ability to do so anonymously has caused a raging debate.<\/p>\n Opponents say anyone with access to Twitter can make potentially false accusations capable of destroying someone\u2019s career and even life.<\/p>\n Advocates say victims have little choice in a country where machismo runs deep, accusers often face hateful backlash and the justice system rarely produces convictions.<\/p>\n \u2013 #MeToo and suicides \u2013<\/strong><\/p>\n Vega\u2019s death is not the first time the #MeToo movement has been linked to the suicide of someone accused.<\/p>\n Other cases include prominent Swedish theater director Benny Fredriksson, who took his own life in March 2018 after being accused of sexual misconduct and bullying.<\/p>\n His widow, the opera singer Anne Sofie von Otter, said he was the victim of \u201ccharacter assassination\u201d that drove him into a deep depression.<\/p>\n And Hollywood producer Jill Messick took her own life in February 2018 after being accused of enabling Weinstein\u2019s aggressive behavior, including arranging a meeting where he allegedly raped actress Rose McGowan.<\/p>\n Messick\u2019s family said she had battled depression for years, but had recently felt \u201cvictimized\u201d by inaccurate reports about her role in the affair.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n