SHEIK Taj Din al-Hilali has apologised for any offence caused by his comments that immodestly dressed women provoke sexual attacks.
"I unreservedly apologise to any woman who is offended by my comments," he said in a statement yesterday. "I had only intended to protect women's honour, something lost in The Australian's presentation of my talk."
The newspaper had translated a sermon the cleric gave a month ago.
According to The Australian's translation, he said: "If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside on the street, or in the garden or in the park, or in the backyard without a cover, and the cats come and eat it . . . whose fault is it, the cats or the uncovered meat?" he asked.
"The uncovered meat is the problem.
"If she was in her room, in her home, in her hijab (Islamic headscarf which covers the hair neck and shoulders), no problem would have occurred."
But the Mufti of Australia and New Zealand would not back away from his comments and said he was shocked by the way his sermon was interpreted.
"The Australian front page article reported selected comments from a talk presented one month ago," the sheik said.
"The title was 'Why men were mentioned before women for the crime of theft and woman (sic) before men for the sin of fornication'.
"I would like to unequivocally confirm that the presentation related to religious teachings on modesty and not to go to extremes in enticements, this does not condone rape, I condemn rape and reiterate that this is a capital crime.
"Women in our Australian society have the freedom and right to dress as they choose (while) the duty of man is to avert his glance or walk away.
"If a man falls from grace and commits fornication then if this was consensual, they would be both guilty, but if it was forced, then the man has committed a capital crime.
"Whether a man endorses or not, a particular form of dress, any form of harassment of women is unacceptable."
A spokesman for Sheik al-Hilali said the backlash and criticism had badly affected him and he had been depressed and confined to bed, breathing with the assistance of an oxygen tank.
