Musharraf's remarks on rapes in Pakistan decried

Musharraf's remarks on rapes in Pakistan decried 16 Sep 2005 11:51:44 GMT Source: Reuters By Zeeshan Haider ISLAMABAD, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Outrage mounted in Pakistan and abroad on Friday over President Pervez Musharraf's comment that many Pakistanis felt that crying rape is an easy way to make money and move to Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has already condemned the remarks made by Musharraf, who is in the United States having addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday. London-based rights group Amnesty International said Musharraf should apologise, and newspapers back home decried their leader's attitude. Musharraf told the Washington Post in an interview published on Tuesday that Pakistan should not be singled out on rape issues as other countries had the same problems. "You must understand the environment in Pakistan ... This has become a money-making concern. A lot of people say if you want to go abroad and get a visa for Canada or citizenship and be a millionaire, get yourself raped," the Post quoted Musharraf as saying. Dawn, Pakistan's leading English language daily, rounded on Musharraf in an editorial headlined "Wrong thing to say". "If this attitude, of blaming rape and other crimes against women on women themselves and ridiculing NGOs (non-government organisations) that take up such issues, begins to travel upward from ignorant mullahs and male chauvinists to permeate the higher echelons of the administration, then God help us," it said. Amnesty International said it was outraged at the remarks by Musharraf, who is due to address an audience of Pakistani-American women in New York on Saturday. "This callous and insulting statement requires a public apology from President Musharraf to the women of Pakistan and especially to victims of rape, sexual assault and other forms of violence that are rampant with impunity in Pakistan," the London-based group said in a statement issued on Thursday. "His statement is an offense to women all over the world." Musharraf, according to media reports, told a news conference in New York on Thursday that he had been expressing a commonly held opinion rather than his own. Earlier, Canada's Martin said he had raised the matter with the Pakistani leader during a meeting on the sidelines of the General Assembly. "I stated unequivocally that comments such as that are not acceptable and that violence against women is also a blight that besmirches all humanity," Martin told a news conference. GANG RAPE Rape is prevalent particularly in rural areas of Pakistan, but most cases go unreported because of the social stigma. Pakistan's media, however, has become more active in following up stories since a notorious gang rape generated massive publicity at home and abroad when the victim spoke out about her ordeal. Mukhtaran Mai, now an icon for human rights in Pakistan, was gang-raped three years ago on the orders of a village council after her brother, then 12, was judged to have befriended a woman of a powerful clan. Musharraf earlier this year blocked Mai from travelling to the United States to attend a women's rights conference in the United States, saying he believed the conference would have tarnished Pakistan's image rather than improved the lot of women. The ban was later lifted after international criticism including from the U.S. government.   ((PAKISTAN-RAPE, Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Sanjeev Miglani; Reuters Messaging; zeeshan.haider.reuters.com@reuters.net; Islamabad newsroom +92 51 2800 155, fax +92-51 2800 157))