Saudi king pardons rape victim (MSNBC)
I just came across the article, “Saudi king pardons rape victim“. It’s about how a 19-year-old Saudi girl was pardoned from the charges incurred for being alone with a man whom she’s not related to. She was originally sentenced to “several months in prison and 90 lashes” because she was alone in a car with a man. She was getting a picture of herself back because she recently married someone else. After she appealed to the court, her sentence was raised to 200 lashes and six months in prison.
While she was in the car, seven men attacked them and she was raped. They are now facing charges of 2-9 years in prison. Here’s what really bothers me, aside from the obvious: the US did nothing about it. With all the political and military power we have, we do nothing about it. I feel that we have some responsibility to right the wrong in the world when we have the ability.
U.S. President George W. Bush expressed anger at the sentence earlier this month, saying he wondered how he would react if it had been one of his daughters. But he said he had not made his views known directly to the Saudi king, a U.S. ally.
Our president spoke out against it. That’s all well and good, it’s just that he said nothing directly to the people who matter; he made no change. It makes me mad how irresponsible this country is, with the current war situation and how we could be helping people like this, but we just choose not to.