'Disgust' at David Davies comments (From Asian Image)

'Disgust' at David Davies comments

3:56pm Thursday 28th January 2010

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A Tory MP has been slammed for accusing some communities of importing “barbaric and medieval” views about women into Britain while discussing the sentencing of an Asian teenager for rape.

David Davies, a member of the Home Affairs Select Committee called for the Attorney General to review the three-year term imposed on Balal Khan, 14.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live was quoted as saying, " What is it about this young man’s upbringing, what about his community or his parental upbringing, that led him to think that women are second-class people whose rights can be trampled over like this?”

”That is a very interesting question. And, you know, there are some sensitive issues here, but there do seem to be some people in some communities who don’t respect women’s rights at all and who - if I may say, without necessarily saying that this is the case on this occasion - who have imported into this country barbaric and medieval views about women and that is something that also needs to be addressed.”

Mr. Mohammed Shafiq, Chief Executive of the Ramadhan Foundation said, "I am disgusted with David Davies, Conservative MP for Monmouth's attempts to link the disgusting case of a teenage rapist to the Muslim and Ethnic minority communities on the BBC.

"We in our communities find what Bilal Khan has done evil and totally unacceptable in Islam and for Mr. Davies to suggest that somehow these rapist attitudes's engrained in some parts of the BME communities is deeply offensive and of no substance.

"Clearly Mr. Davies has not provided any evidence to back his absurd views and along with Douglas Murray from the Centre of Social Cohesion the right wing brigade are trying once again to demonise and attack Islam and Muslims."

"There are many examples of domestic violence and murder in white communities as the case of Eddlington last week clearly demonstrated but we do not used that case to demonise all white people.

"Mr Davies and his fellow right wingers should apologise for the hurt this has caused our communities and recognise these statements are deeply irresponsible and not befitting a member of Parliament and a organisation that wants to promote social cohesion."

The Conservative Party distanced itself from Mr Davies’s comments.

A spokesman said: “These comments do not reflect the views of the party in any way.”

Khan was sentenced to three years in a young offenders institution at Stoke Crown Court after admitting raping and robbing a 20-year-old woman.

Welsh Secretary Peter Hain said: “I am appalled at this Conservative MP’s indiscriminate attack on whole communities in our tolerant society.

”This sort of inflammatory language from a leading Welsh Tory does nothing to help hardworking people in difficult times.

”We are trying to get along together the best we can - David Davies should be ashamed of himself.”

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