A Tory councillor sparked outrage when he posted online and said an alleged rape victim was 'likely' working as a prostitute.
Shaun Slator tweeted on Hogmanay in response to an attack in a South London park on December 30.
The tweet was headed “Woman raped in Plumstead park in early hours” and included a police comment, but Slator replied: “More likely that it's a punter that didn't pay.”
After he was approached by the Daily Mirror, Mr Slator, commented: “I’m not promoting rape, am I?” He then admitted: “I don’t know that she is or she isn’t (a prostitute), do you?”
Labour MP Jess Phillips, the Shadow Minister for Domestic Violence and Safeguarding, said: “These comments are dangerous and stupid.
“First, prostituted and exploited women are raped and abused all the time and should be cared for, the idea that sexually exploited women and girls can't be abused is what led to grave cover up and state failure. He should educate himself.
“Second, to stigmatise and blame any victim is despicable and it's the reason why so few rapists ever face justice.
“He should focus on the terrible failure of Conservatives to secure conviction and charge in cases of sexual violence, they've crippled police and courts so badly. These attitudes have no place in society and even less so in a representative. The Conservatives shouldn't allow it in their ranks.”
Lib Dem MP Sarah Olney said: "This is a disgusting comment to make. The councillor should apologise immediately and retract these disgraceful comments.
“I expect the Conservative Party to suspend him without delay. These attitudes towards rape should not be tolerated anywhere in this country, and especially in our politics. For elected representatives to spout such offensive remarks on this crime really is shocking."
Women's Equality Party leader Mandu Reid told the Mirror: “I live in South East London and I was devastated to hear of this horrific incident - my thoughts are with the woman who reported the attack. The comments made by Shaun Slator are disgraceful and make me so angry, they demonstrate that he is not fit to serve as a councillor and should be removed from his duties immediately.
“Rape and all other forms of violence against women should always been taken seriously by everyone. To have an elected official publicly dismissing a rape allegation is completely unacceptable and sends a terrible message to the women and girls he is supposed to represent.
“The scourge of male violence against women in our society will never end whilst attitudes like councillor Slator's are allowed to prevail.”
Mr Slator was unrepentant: “The area has a huge problem with prostitutes which I have been reporting for years, and the local police and council don’t seem to do anything about it. I’ve sent them video evidence of the prostitutes chasing the guys down the road because they've not paid, and stuff like that.
“That’s a frequent thing that happens round here - the men don’t pay the prostitutes and then the women say they have been raped.
“There’s also other ones where they get caught in the park, the guy does a runner and then the woman says, ‘Oh, I was getting raped’.”
Asked if he knew that had happened in the incident reported, unrepentant Mr Slator admitted: “I don’t know.”
But he went on: “There’s been a rape reported at 4am in Plumstead, and I think it's very unlikely to have anyone walking round on her own.”
Asked if it was appropriate for a councillor to suggest an alleged rape victim was a prostitute, he insisted: “I said it was a possibility. I think if there is a problem with that and the police haven’t been solving it for many years, I think that is a problem.”
He admitted he could see why some people might have a problem with his tweet, but added: “Would they rather people were working to take women off of drugs, out of the abusive situation that they’re in, or would they rather that continued?
“I would rather that stopped.”
Asked if he could understand why campaigners might have a problem with the language he used, he hit back: “I’m not promoting rape, am I? I’m not justifying it all. You can put a headline there saying a woman has been raped but when you look behind it there’s a huge problem in the area with prostitutes, with women on drugs, women being abused, women being pimped out.
“I’ve had a knife pulled on me by a pimp in Plumstead for walking past a prostitute. There’s a huge problem here which the council and police aren’t tackling.”
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