New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan can’t seem to stop victim-blaming or finding easy scapegoats when it comes to sexual assault and women’s safety in Pakistani society.
While addressing the Punjab Education Convention in Lahore Wednesday, PM Khan linked sexual assault to the increasing misuse of mobile phones, Hindustan Times reported. This comes days after a TikTok user was allegedly sexually assaulted and harassed by a mob at Lahore’s Minar-e-Pakistan.
“Sexual crimes are on the rise due to the misuse of mobile phones,” Khan was quoted saying.
“In human history, we never witnessed the kind of exposure to things that children have nowadays,” he added, according to Niche Lifestyle.
So, what is needed to address this ‘problem’? Khan, while acknowledging the need for technology in education, stressed on the importance of the youth learning more about Prophet Mohammad since it helps in “character building”.
Many agreed with him, while others pointed out Imran Khan’s long history of misogynistic comments and blunders when it comes to women’s rights.
Also read: Imran Khan took a stand against US. But forgot to stand up for rape victims
Supporters and critics
Khan’s remarks were met with both support and criticism on social media. One Instagram user was in complete agreement, saying that the PM’s calls for education were long overdue.
Another user, however, felt the situation was “ridiculous”. “Sex crimes need strict law and action. Punishment (torturous) so hard that anyone thinks 100 times before committing such crimes against any living being,” they said.
“Has he [the PM] ever thought of accusing men who do the actual assault?”, Twitter user Fatah asked.
Sexual assault on women and Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statements
Men aren’t robots. Women are at fault for wearing such clothes.
Mobile phones are the cause of rising sexual crimes.
Has he ever thought of accusing men who do the actual assault?
— Fatah (@fatah_pak) August 26, 2021
However, in reply to the Hindustan Times’ video on Twitter quoting PM Khan, several users on either side of the border also agreed with him.
“Nothing wrong in what he said. He was only highlighting the negative side of mobile phone use. The issue is prevalent almost in every country,” an Indian user said.
Nothing wrong in what he said. He was only highlighting the negative side of mobile phone use. The issue is prevalent almost in every country.
— Sridhar Tempalle? (@SridharTempalle) August 26, 2021
Also read: You thought Asif Zardari & Pervez Musharraf were sexists. Meet Pakistan PM Imran Khan
A history of misogyny
Unsurprisingly, this isn’t even the first time this year that Prime Minister Imran Khan has chosen to victim blame, instead of directly calling out rapists.
In June, PM Khan was labelled a “rape apologist” by Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz after he blamed rape victims for their attire.
“If a woman is wearing very few clothes it will have an impact on the man unless they are robots. It’s common sense,” Khan had said in an interview with HBO Axios journalist Jonathan Swan, The Guardian reported.
A month after being widely condemned by women’s rights groups in Pakistan, Khan said these remarks were taken out of context. “I would never say such a stupid thing,” Khan said during a PBS NewsHour interview. He added that only a rapist is responsible for rape.
However, PM Khan had also earlier made similar comments in a Q&A with members of the Pakistani public on national television in April. According to the BBC, Khan’s scapegoats for cases of sexual violence in Pakistan at the time were India, the West and Hollywood films.
“In any society where vulgarity is prevalent, there are consequences,” he had said.
Khan’s ex-wife and British screenwriter Jemima Goldsmith had criticised his comments at the time saying, “The onus is on men.”
I’m hoping this is a misquote/ mistranslation. The Imran I knew used to say, “Put a veil on the man’s eyes not on the woman.” https://t.co/NekU0QklnL
— Jemima Goldsmith (@Jemima_Khan) April 7, 2021
Last year, Khan had blamed Hollywood and Bollywood for rising rates of sex crimes and divorce in Pakistan, according to The Week.
Imran Khan has yet to publicly address the responses to his latest remarks connecting misuse of mobile phones and sexual assault.