Asuncion, Paraguay - Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo publicly admitted Monday that he fathered an illegitimate who is now 2 years old, in the wake of a legal complaint filed by the boy's mother. "It is true that there was a relationship with Viviana Carrillo, I take every responsibility that might derive from that event, admitting to being the boy's father," Lugo said in a press conference at the government palace in Asuncion.

The boy was conceived while Lugo was a Roman Catholic bishop and therefore under a vow of celibacy.

Carrillo's lawyers filed suit against the president last week. Government officials then denied the allegations and said they were part of a campaign to damage Lugo's reputation. The opposition, in turn, accused the former bishop of lying and of having violated Roman Catholic precepts.(dpa)