Duarte’s quip of the tongue

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Paraguayan President Nicanor Duarte has learned that comments regarded as sexist are no longer publicly acceptable in macho Latin America—even if made in an indigenous language.

Duarte ignited a firestorm last week by suggesting that a single female Cabinet member was in need of a partner.

He used a word in the Guarani language, which many Paraguayans speak. The verb he used referred to the custom of beating dirty laundry clean with a stick.

The minister, Judity Andraschko, was unfazed, calling the comment ‘’a quip of the moment.’’

But female opposition lawmakers demanded an apology from Duarte, a lame-duck president and former radio announcer.

Posted by Patrick J. McDonnell and Andres D’Allesandro in Buenos Aires