It's a move in the right direction.
So, the Islamists in the room promptly moved the opposite way:
Islamist lawmakers walked out of parliament, boycotting the vote, after leader Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman told the assembly the change to the law would encourage free sex.
“This is an attempt to create a free sex zone in Pakistan,” he said. “Existing laws are correct and should be maintained … The changes are not in line with Islamic teaching.”
Or, hey, maybe that's just the "angry estrogen" talking, as one of my old liberal commenters likes to call it. Here's the old Pakistani law:
The Islamic laws, known as the Hudood Ordinances, were introduced by a military ruler, President Zia-ul-Haq, in 1979. They made a rape victim liable to prosecution for adultery if she could not produce four male witnesses to the assault.
I think a lot more angry estrogen is warranted in the Muslim world. It'd do all of us good.
Update: More "hot bikini-clad Muslim chick" estrogen would probably work wonders, too.