Actor Hamza Ali Abbasi has had a love-hate relationship with the Pakistani public and is notorious for his opinionated personality and tendency to make statements that spark debate. He has a reputation for often saying things that become super controversial really fast, and while a lot of people admire him for this trait, he has been under scrutiny for it more often than not.

Recently in a tweet, Hamza made a statement that has upset a lot of people.

In a statement aimed at addressing the arrest of a politician, Hamza said that this has been the first time in the history of the country that the ‘big fish’ have been arrested by the civilian government.

He continued on to say that people have been viewing these arrests as a conspiracy because it has never happened for the country before. He closes the tweet by comparing ex-President General Musharraf to the main figures of the parties that were in power in the past and taking a few names.

The trivialization of “rape” here is what pissed people off. People took to their own platforms to express their thoughts and remind everyone that it is not okay to joke about something as sensitive as rape and that anything we say contributes significantly to the normalization of it. They also pointed out that using rape as something to catch people’s eye on social media is highly problematic and should be stopped.

Some pointed out that he could have used any other word to point out and articulate what he was trying to say.

https://twitter.com/AliGhaffarNMU/status/1151950289026596864

People were deeply disturbed and pointed out that Hamza is known to have a vast range in vocabulary, and that a word like rape should not have been used in such a context – no matter the intensity of the situation.

Hamza, however, stuck to his decision. When a follower even offered him a list of words that he could have substituted the word for in order to imply the same effect, he did not seem to agree with her.

The user warned Hamza not to bring rape into politics and use the word so lightly, proceeding to offer a few substitutive suggestions.

https://twitter.com/LalaHawaa/status/1151950714475831300

In response to the follower’s list of words that could have been used alternatively, which included ‘looted, plundered, despoiled and pillaged’, Hamza stayed firm about his initial gesture and said that ‘rape’ was the only word that could accurately describe what he wanted to say.

Referring back to the politicians he mentioned in his original tweet, Hamza said that ‘rape is apt for what they did’, now typing the word in all-caps. He proceeded to claim that he will use a stronger word than the one he used as soon as he finds it, but for now, he does not know of a word that is stronger.

To this, the follower replied with a reminder of why it was not okay to bring rape into the description of a political situation, stating that rape is about power and psychological manipulation.

She pointed out that rape is about power, and has to do with a psychological crime as it involves coercing and ripping the victim of power and agency over themselves and their lives. She also stated that in her opinion, the ‘big fishes’ that Hamza mentioned were not motivated by stripping anyone of power, but more so by greed for money.

https://twitter.com/LalaHawaa/status/1151959200219709440

Hamza has not yet given another statement regarding his decision and why he chose to say what he said. Let’s all hope that our country sees better days in the near future and that everything works out for the best.

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Cover image via : dailytimes.com