Monica Lewinsky: Bill Clinton 'should want to apologise' to me

'I hope... I can help ensure that what happened to me never happens to another young person in our country again,' says Ms Lewinsky

Monica Lewinsky said it’s not too late for former President Bill Clinton to apologise to her, and she would like him to do so.

Before the premiere of a new documentary series detailing her involvement in the 1998 sex scandal with Mr Clinton, Ms Lewinsky revisited her publicly traumatic experience.

For Vanity Fair, Ms Lewinsky wrote that, while there has been some debate as to whether or not she is owed an apology from the Mr Clinton, she believes the important question is whether or not he wants to apologise at all.

“So, what feels more important to me than whether I am owed or deserving of a personal apology is my belief that Bill Clinton should want to apologise,” she wrote. “I’m less disappointed by him, and more disappointed for him. He would be a better man for it...and we, in turn, a better society.”

Lately, the former White House intern has been outspoken about her feelings on the affair. Earlier this year, while Ms Lewinsky said her relationship with the former president was consensual, she felt he had abused his power.

In her essay, Ms Lewinsky said that, after a lot of time spent agonizing over deciding whether or not to participate in the series, she decided it was time to let a woman tell this story. She mentioned Blair Foster, the director of the series, told her that all the books written about the ‘90s scandal were written by men. “History literally being written by men,” Ms Lewinsky wrote.

The new series “The Clinton Affair,” offers a fresh set of perspectives 20 years after the start of impeachment proceedings against Mr Clinton. Ms Lewinsky said that in addition to including more women’s voices, it also “embodies a woman’s gaze” since women make up two of the three main editors and four of the five executive producers.

“I may not like everything that has been put in the series or left out, but I like that the perspective is being shaped by women,” she added. “Yes, the process of filming has been exceedingly painful. But I hope that by participating, by telling the truth about a time in my life—a time in our history—I can help ensure that what happened to me never happens to another young person in our country again.”