"If Afghan men have a culture which leaves them more likely to rape, and our courts have a culture of being more lenient as a consequence, I suggest Australian women have an interest in stopping the boats until we get this sorted out." <heraldsun>

AN Afghan refugee who argued cultural differences led him to rape a drunken girl has won a bid to appeal against a 14-year jail term.

Esmatullah Sharifi, 31, ... pleaded guilty at separate hearings to raping a teen on December 19 [2008] and a woman, 25, on Christmas Eve. He’s been granted leave to appeal against the sentence for raping the teen…
Granting leave to appeal, Court of Appeal Justice Robert Redlich said: “The sentencing judge rejected any suggestion (Sharifi) didn’t have a clear concept of consent in sexual relations...”

But he said the 18-year-old victim had found there were “aspects of his conduct that were strange” because Sharifi treated her like a “willing participant”.
He noted that Sharifi, who came to Australia on a temporary protection visa in 2001, also drove her home.
“It proves, in my view, an adequate basis for most grounds of appeal that (Sharifi) wishes to pursue,” the judge said…

But in his sentencing remarks, Judge Mark Dean said Sharifi had gone hunting for vulnerable, drunken women to rape.