They may be hypocrites but damn it they're our hypocrites.

Blaming the Victim: the latest twists in the Mukhtar Mai saga: "

We reported earlier on Mukhtar Mai / Mukhtaran Bibi, who fought back after having been savagely raped on the orders of her village jirga. Instead of staying silent, she took her rapists to court, and used the compensation awarded by the government to open a school for girls. Her bravery and class made her a cause celebre all over the world.

Unfortunately, her story didn't end there. Recently, she was invited to come speak in the US by ANAA (Asian American Network Against the Abuse of Women). In response the Pakistani government flipped out and put her under house arrest. She is banned from leaving the country, and hasn't been able to see her lawyer.

In phone conversations in the last few days, she said that when she tried to step outside, police pointed their guns at her. To silence her, the police cut off her land line... Ms. Mukhtaran continued her protests by cellphone. But at dawn yesterday the police bustled her off, and there's been no word from her since. Her cellphone doesn't answer.

Asma Jahangir, a Pakistani lawyer who is head of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, said she had learned that Ms. Mukhtaran was taken to Islamabad, furiously berated and told that President Pervez Musharraf was very angry with her. She was led sobbing to detention at a secret location. She is barred from contacting anyone, including her lawyer. [NYT]

Incredibly, the government claims it is just trying to protect her:

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz told reporters in Islamabad that any security measures in place were for the protection of Ms Mai. [BBC]

And the US government has made it clear that it is unconcerned:

... on Friday, just as all this was happening, President Bush received Pakistan's foreign minister in the White House and praised President Musharraf's 'bold leadership.' [NYT]

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(Via Sepia Mutiny.)