It was hard not to be appalled by the news last month out of Saudi Arabia. A young woman had been gang raped — and then charged as a criminal for being in the car of a man who was not a relative. On November 16, a Saudi court sentenced the rape victim to six months in jail and 200 lashes — more than doubling her initial penalty.
CNN’s Ed Henry pressed the president on the matter at this morning’s White House press conference.
Q: Thank you. Another issue — on another issue of credibility in the Mideast, at the Annapolis summit, you used your influence to get Saudi Arabia to the table. But I wonder whether now you will use your influence to do something about the Saudi rape case that’s gotten so much international attention. What goes through your mind when you hear about a 19-year-old Saudi women getting gang-raped by seven men and basically a Saudi court blames the victim and sentenced her to 200 lashes? You spoke to King Abdullah by telephone in the last couple of weeks. Did you press him on this case? If so, what did you say? And if not, are you giving him a pass?
BUSH: My first thoughts were these: What happens if this happened to my daughter? How would I react? And I would have been — I would have been — I’d have been very emotional, of course. I’d have been angry at those who committed the crime, and I’d be angry at a state that didn’t support the victim. And our opinions were expressed by Dana Perino from the podium and —
Q: But did you press King Abdullah about it, personally?
BUSH: I talked to King Abdullah about the Middle Eastern peace. I don’t remember if that subject came up.
Bush was with Abdullah just last week. The president may have a lot on his plate, but he’d probably remember if he pressed the Saudi King about a rape trial eight days ago.
TP, which has the video, provides some important context.
Despite the President’s strident rhetoric supporting global human rights, the administration has so far refused to condemn the Saudi government and push it to lift the sentence. When asked about the case last month, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said only that the situation is “very discouraging and outrageous. There is an appeals process and we hope that the verdict changes.” State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that the administration was “astonished,” but had “nothing else to offer.”
Looks like human rights aren’t as important as old “family friends.”
I’d just add that Ed Henry pressed the issue a little more, asking Bush, “But if it’s that important to you, why wouldn’t you bring it — at that level, bring it directly up to King Abdullah?”
The president responded, “We’ll have plenty of time.” I suspect the rape victim in Saudi Arabia facing six months in jail and 200 lashes would disagree.