MEXICO CITY (AP) — A Mexican senator has apologized after being caught by a photographer in a racy cellphone chat during a Senate session.
A photo taken over his shoulder showed Sen. Ismael Garcia Cabeza de Vaca exchanging text messages with people who appear to be friends concerning a photo of a scantily clad young woman.
The photo published Tuesday by the newspaper El Universal appeared to show the two discussing how they would like to have sex with the woman. Both also appear to use pig emojis in the chat.
The Senate was hearing testimony from the treasury secretary at the time.
Late Tuesday Garcia Cabeza de Vaca posted a "sincere apology," saying "I should not have participated in a clearly misogynist conversation."
Garcia Cabeza de Vaca, of the conservative National Action Party, called it "an inappropriate joke. It was never intended any other way."
Sen. Marti Batres wrote in his Twitter account that he has asked the Senate legal team to review the incident and recommend appropriate action, if necessary.
A university student who claimed to be the woman in the photo said she didn't know how her picture wound up on the chat, in which one of the men suggested falsely she might be a prostitute.
Student Fernanda Morena told the El Financiero media group, "It seemed disrespectful to me," adding, "I was very surprised that our senators are doing these kinds of things, looking at these kinds of things at such important moments."
