Bush Refuses to Condemn Saudi Court’s Punishment of Gang Rape Victim

This post, written by Faiz Shakir, originally appeared on Think Progress

In his second inaugural address, President Bush stridently declared that his administration would not compromise on its demand for basic human rights:

We will persistently clarify the choice before every ruler and every nation: The moral choice between oppression, which is always wrong, and freedom, which is eternally right. America will not pretend...that women welcome humiliation and servitude.

A week ago, a Saudi appeals court increased the punishment for the female victim of a gang rape. The woman, who had been appealing her original sentence of 90 lashes, was sentenced to six months in prison and 200 lashes after her appeal.

The Saudi judges more than doubled the punishment for the victim because of "her attempt to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media." The Saudi Justice Ministry confirmed that the stiffer sentence handed out on appeal stemmed from the fact that the victim had gone to the media with her story. "Media may have adverse effects on the other parties involved in the case," a statement said.

Asked to offer the administration's position on the court ruling, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Monday that the administration was "astonished," but had "nothing else to offer":

QUESTION: A very quick question also from this morning. Your comment, please, on -- in reaction to the young Saudi woman having her sentence more than doubled the -

MR. MCCORMACK: Right, yeah. I saw the news reports and I guess the first thing to say is, while this is a judicial procedure, part of a judicial procedure overseas in the courts of a sovereign country, that said,I think that most would find this relatively astonishing that something like this happened. So while it's very difficult to offer -- you know, offer any detailed comment about the situation, I think most people would really be quite astonished by the situation.

QUESTION: Would you like the Saudi authorities to reconsider it or do you encourage them to do that?

MR. MCCORMACK: Look, you know, again, I can't get involved in specific court cases in Saudi Arabia dealing with its own citizens, but most -- I think most people here would be quite surprised to learn of the circumstances and then the punishment meted out.

QUESTION: Does that mean that the State Department is astonished by it, too?

MR. MCCORMACK: I'll leave the answer where it -

QUESTION: Well, what does "most people" mean? I mean, most of who?

MR. MCCORMACK: I would just leave -- I don't have anything else to offer.