06-16-2005, 07:17 PM
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Tahoma, Arial" id="quote">quote<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States urged Pakistan to respect human rights after what the Americans called the "outrageous" case of a rape victim who was sanctioned while her attackers went free.
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The State Department took a swipe at the key US ally over the treatment of Mukhtaran Mai, the victim of a notorious gang rape, whose ordeal has captured world attention.
With Mai's rapists free after a series of twisting legal developments, Islamabad had moved to stop her from traveling to the United States at the invitation of the rights group Amnesty International.
The travel ban was lifted on Wednesday but State Department spokesman Sean McCormack made it clear that Washington was still fuming.
"The United States expects Pakistan's leaders to honor their pledge to protect the basic human rights of their citizens, including the freedom to travel," McCormack told reporters.
He described Mai as "a courageous woman who was the victim of a horrendous crime" and said she was welcome to come to the United States at any time.
"We were confronted with what I can only say was an outrageous situation, where her attackers were ordered to be freed while she had restrictions on her travel placed on her," McCormack said.
"We conveyed our views about these restrictions to the senior levels of the Pakistani government," he said, adding that Washington was informed Wednesday that Mai had been removed from the "exit control list."
McCormack said Mai had been in contact with US embassy officials in Pakistan but would not discuss the substance of the discussions. He would not comment on her allegation she was held under house arrest.
Mai, 33, was raped in June 2002, allegedly on the orders of a tribal council in the remote Pakistani village as punishment for her brother's affair with a woman of a powerful rival clan.
Her pursuit of justice drew world acclaim and she was invited by Amnesty International to meet with US congressional leaders and administration officials to discuss abuses against women in South Asia.
Christina Rocca, US assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs, blasted the travel ban Tuesday, saying Washington was "dismayed at the treatment being meted out to a courageous woman."
The Pakistani government had said its aim was to protect Mai but the case provided another wrinkle to the already delicate relationship between Islamabad and Washington.
Critics have accused the US administration of overlooking the autocratic nature of President Pervez Musharraf's government for fear of losing a crucial ally in the war on terror.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Source AFP
As predicted the whipping boy is in action now [D][D][D] and we are getting lesson on values justice and human rights.
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The State Department took a swipe at the key US ally over the treatment of Mukhtaran Mai, the victim of a notorious gang rape, whose ordeal has captured world attention.
With Mai's rapists free after a series of twisting legal developments, Islamabad had moved to stop her from traveling to the United States at the invitation of the rights group Amnesty International.
The travel ban was lifted on Wednesday but State Department spokesman Sean McCormack made it clear that Washington was still fuming.
"The United States expects Pakistan's leaders to honor their pledge to protect the basic human rights of their citizens, including the freedom to travel," McCormack told reporters.
He described Mai as "a courageous woman who was the victim of a horrendous crime" and said she was welcome to come to the United States at any time.
"We were confronted with what I can only say was an outrageous situation, where her attackers were ordered to be freed while she had restrictions on her travel placed on her," McCormack said.
"We conveyed our views about these restrictions to the senior levels of the Pakistani government," he said, adding that Washington was informed Wednesday that Mai had been removed from the "exit control list."
McCormack said Mai had been in contact with US embassy officials in Pakistan but would not discuss the substance of the discussions. He would not comment on her allegation she was held under house arrest.
Mai, 33, was raped in June 2002, allegedly on the orders of a tribal council in the remote Pakistani village as punishment for her brother's affair with a woman of a powerful rival clan.
Her pursuit of justice drew world acclaim and she was invited by Amnesty International to meet with US congressional leaders and administration officials to discuss abuses against women in South Asia.
Christina Rocca, US assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs, blasted the travel ban Tuesday, saying Washington was "dismayed at the treatment being meted out to a courageous woman."
The Pakistani government had said its aim was to protect Mai but the case provided another wrinkle to the already delicate relationship between Islamabad and Washington.
Critics have accused the US administration of overlooking the autocratic nature of President Pervez Musharraf's government for fear of losing a crucial ally in the war on terror.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Source AFP
As predicted the whipping boy is in action now [D][D][D] and we are getting lesson on values justice and human rights.
