WHY do our presidents always end up embarrassing us internationally by making sexist remarks? First it was Gen Musharraf who, in the wake of the Mukhtaran Mai gang-rape case, indicated that women got themselves raped as that was an easy route to getting a foreign visa. Now, it is President Asif Zardari who, apparently smitten by the charms of US vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, called the Alaskan governor “gorgeous” and was quite prepared to give her a hug for the camera. It is, of course, bad enough for women in Pakistan to be looked upon by men as no more than personal property or a sex object. But it is equally insulting when such attitudes are displayed in full force abroad and that too by heads of state who, whatever their personal views on the subject, should ideally be restrained in their affections and observe some level of decorum.

In fact, given the remarkable political tenacity of the woman he was married to, it is even more surprising that President Zardari should exhibit such sentiments. For much of the world, Benazir Bhutto was a political leader who fought against two dictatorships and stood resolutely by the tenets of democracy. That she was a woman — and that too from a patriarchal national set-up — made her a symbol of hope for many of her sex. Perhaps our leaders need to recall the many contributions made by women here and abroad and that it has taken them centuries to break away from the mould of tradition. Much more remains to be done on that front, especially in conservative societies like ours where few women have the luxury of choice. Chauvinistic gestures by top leaders are not likely to help in that direction.