The recent statement by Kelantan Menteri Besar, Tok Guru Nik Aziz, about women inviting rape when they expose their aurat brings me back to the early 80s when I first wrote about this problem.

At the time, I'd pointed out that in male-dominated societies not only in Malaysia but also in the West, violence against women as portrayed in the media and especially "video nasties" was contributing to the acceptance of certain so-called "normalities" (New Straits Times, April11, 1984) :

That it is "normal" and acceptable for men to rape, mutilate and murder women.

That it is "normal" and accepted that women are the natural victims of this violence.

It is showing boys that this is what "adult men" do and they are being trained to treat women with contempt.

Nik Aziz's theological wisdom was starkly and very sadly challenged when a modestly dressed woman in her tudung was brutally raped and murdered in an express bus soon after his unfortunate statement. But how different is the Tok Guru's from the prevalent attitudes toward women in male-dominated societies including those in the West?

Rape, in the words of feminists, is "the ultimate expression of contempt for women of all ages".

Quite often, court rulings reveal a similar line of thinking. The hypocrisy is evident in the necessity for the rape victim to prove her "moral" uprightness in the courts. For most men, rape is only considered rape when it is committed by a stranger or when there are bruises to show, not when it is committed on the matrimonial bed or when it is committed by an acquaintance or friend or when there are no obvious physical injuries. I spoke in the Dewan Rakyat on the Domestic Violence Act in which this dimension of violence against women was omitted from the Act.

In many societies, there is no concept in law of rape inside marriage. Two hundred years ago, Judge Hale said: "The husband cannot be guilty of a rape committed by himself on his lawful wife for by their mutual matrimonial consent and contract the wife hath given herself in this kind unto her husband which she cannot retract." ("Sentencing rapists: Aims and Assumptions", Aug 8, 1987, in Kua Kia Soong, Malaysian Political Realities , Oriengroup 1992: 96).

The discriminatory aspect of the law can also be seen in the varying sentences given to men and women found guilty of murder within marriage. To cite some British cases, Jane Asher, a well-known star was strangled to death by her husband. She was supposed to have "carried on" with other men at a party. The husband was let out of prison after only 10 weeks. The attitude of the court had indicated that Jane Asher was somehow "at fault", that somehow her behaviour had precipitated her own violent death.

In another case, a Mrs X had been violently beaten over eight years by her husband when she stabbed and killed him. She was sentenced to six years in prison. The judge pronounced: "We cannot hold that the sentence imposed was excessive, indeed it could have been higher." (ibid, p.97)

No different

Such cases, which are certainly not confined to Britain, bring out the alarming assumption made by the law about women and about female sexuality. In rape cases, instead of the man being culpable, it becomes the woman who is seen to be culpable.

She is said to have "brought it on herself" by being out alone at night; by befriending men in shopping complexes, hitchhiking, behaving extrovertly, or was known to have had previous sexual relations with other men. The Malaysian Women's Aid Organisation has compiled data to show that judicial rulings in Malaysia have been no different.

As in the discredited theory of rape and a woman's exposed aurat, such attitudes beg the question, what is a "safe" place for women when rape occurs in the home and in many "unprovocative" situations?

Women are also seen to be culpable if they do not belong to the "norm". Prostitutes are most often seen to be culpable. It is as if it is inconceivable that a prostitute could be raped. The corollary of this assumption usually is: "In any case, if a prostitute is raped, who cares?"

Although this may not perturb those who harbour "high morals", the implication of this assumption is actually deadly serious for it affects all women in general. This point was clearly demonstrated in the horrific Yorkshire Ripper case in the 70s. For it was only after "respectable" women were raped that the law began to take serious note. Lord Denning said rather revealingly in 1982:

"Some were prostitutes, some were women of easy virtue, but the last six attacks involved victims whose reputations were totally unblemished some were prostitutes but perhaps the saddest part of the case is that some were not." (ibid, p.100)

Sexist stereotypes

We can therefore see a set of assumptions of sexist stereotypes which is against the interest of women in general. These assumptions extend beyond the law and "traditional morality" to popular consciousness.

For example, many people feel an ambiguity of response toward some sexual crimes and sexual activity. After all, it is to a large extent "socially acceptable" to enjoy violent sex films, sexually titillating advertisements, "masculine" aggression, "feminine" passivity, etc. The hypocritical strong response is then seen in many men's call to "hang rapists" as if to infer that rapists and other sex offenders are deviants or a species apart.

By describing rapists as deviants, men in the establishment are absolving themselves from any responsibility. Women are constantly being lectured at on "right behaviour" but somehow the question of educating men is seldom raised.

It is about time that socially responsible Malaysian men came out to form a "Men For Women's Civil Rights" group to intervene in this polarised situation.

The only "safe" society where women are protected is a society of socially responsible men and women who do not condone derogatory behaviour towards women in general; who do not find amusing films and images of women which degrade them; who do not practise double standards toward their spouse, their daughters, their colleagues in their day-to-day behaviour. In such a preferred society, unconditional respect is the norm, caring is the norm. Imagine the joy of raising our children in such a nurturing and safe environment!

Rape and other forms of violence against women will only be solved when society focuses on the root causes, the perpetrators of these crimes and not on the victims. We must find effective ways to educate ourselves, especially our sons that whatever a woman's behaviour, however a woman dresses, there is no justification for rape.

To recognise this fact is to appreciate the full meaning of the civil right of women to be treated as equal legal persons in every aspect of life, without discrimination in law or in fact.

DR KUA KIA SOONG, a former MP, is principal of New Era College, Kajang. He is also a director of human rights group Suaram