The newspaper The New York Times revealed this Friday the accusations of sexual assault by two women against the Nepalese Himalayan, Nirmal Purja. Lotta Hintsa, Miss Finland (35 years old), and the American doctor April Leonardo (41), agree in pointing out “kisses without consent, aggressive advances or touching without permission.” Purja, 40 years old, the man who amazed the world after climbing the planet’s 14 ‘eight thousand’ in 2019 in a record time of 189 days (a record that is not recorded, since it was proven that he had not stepped on at least two peaks), He declared yesterday, through a statement from his lawyer, that “the accusations are defamatory and false.” He has more than two million followers on Instagram.
Regarding her position, Lotta Hintsa details in a meeting in 2023 at the Marriott Hotel in Kathmandu (capital of Nepal) where she went to draw up a joint work plan with Nirmal Purja to bring clients to different ‘eight thousand’. Purja insisted on holding the meeting in a room, where, according to the testimony of the Finnish Himalayan, the sexual assault took place. For her part, April Leonardo came as a client to K 2 in 2022 under the umbrella of the Elite Expeditions guide company, which belongs to Nirmal Purja. Once at the mountain base camp, Purja, a former special forces member and Member of the Order of the British Empire, “repeatedly hugged, touched and kissed” the Californian climber, even breaking into her tent without any permission. Purja, hero of the Netflix documentary titled The 14 Eight Thousands, resides in the United Kingdom, is married, has a child and receives sponsorship from brands such as Red Bull or Nike. His commitment to climbing the 14 eight-thousanders in record time earned him worldwide fame and he launched his guiding company, which placed special emphasis on recruiting female clientele. His clients have included Russian models or members of the Qatari family.
The article of The New York Times highlights that the testimonies provided by both women against Purja also show the lack of references when it comes to reporting this type of aggression in a scenario like the one they describe. The alleged victims say they feel helpless as they do not know where to report, or in which country the complaint should be filed, whether in Nepal, where the alleged crime occurred, or whether in their country of origin, the United Kingdom or the United States. Ultimately, both recognize that their complaint hopes that it will at least help so that no other women suffer what they have suffered.
The American newspaper, which addresses the issue at length, tells how women mountaineers in the eight thousand have felt sexually harassed by almost 47% of those consulted, by 16% of men. The data comes from an initiative promoted as a result of the movement I too and promoted by the climbing community in the United States.
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.
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