THE Scottish Rape Crisis Alliance (SRCA) has condemned Scottish Green MSP Q Manivannan’s comments on rape.

Speaking on The Subjective Space last year, Manivannan argued there was a there had been a “demonisation of rape,” adding: “It is a spectrum of things that constitute that one homogenised word, rape.”

The comments sparked outcry across the political spectrum, even drawing the attention of UN special rapporteur on Violence Against Women and Girls, Reem Alsalem, who warned in a post on X: “Insinuations that acts of rape could fall on a spectrum, risk undermining the important progress we have made around the globe in criminalising rape.”

Now the SRCA has penned an open letter to make clear it “fundamentally rejects the suggestion that society is demonising rape.”

“We do not need to exaggerate its seriousness. We do not need to turn perpetrators into mythical monsters.

The letter added: “‘Was my rape serious enough?’ should never be a question a survivor has to ask themselves.

“We are asking the Scottish Green Party, and all political representatives, to be unequivocal. 

“Do not minimise rape. Do not normalise sexual violence. Do not create hierarchies of harm.

“Do not ask survivors to make their experiences smaller so that political conversations can be made more comfortable.

“And do not lose sight of the person, more often than not a woman or girl, at the centre of the discussion.

“She is not a theoretical concept. She is not a statistic. She is not a political pawn.”

Q Manivannan told the Star: “I am horrified that my comments were selectively edited in order to mislead people and misrepresent me, but I also accept that my language was abstract in the first place and for that I take full responsibility and am sorry.

“During the interview, I categorically stated that rape in every context is equally serious and harmful. This section of the interview was maliciously left out of clips — with the rest being misrepresented and widely shared out of context, despite my repeated clarifications. I also made the point that rapists do not fit a single stereotype and that many men are relatives or known to their victims.

“I recognise that the words in the clip shared, without the full context of the conversation, have caused considerable upset. For that I apologise. I will always stand with and for victims and survivors.

“Rape and sexual violence can leave profound pain, fear, hurt and trauma. I know from my experience of surviving sexual violence and speaking about recovery how deeply those experiences can affect people. And this complete mischaracterisation of my words has now returned me to my trauma.

“I would never seek to diminish or dismiss any survivor’s experience, or to make anyone feel that their pain was not heard or understood.

“I am genuinely sorry to everyone who has been distressed, hurt or triggered by the clips, and by the discussion and coverage that has followed. Words matter, particularly when speaking about something as deeply personal and painful as sexual violence, and I regret this hurt caused.

“I would welcome the opportunity to meet with survivor and advocacy groups to listen to their perspectives and have an honest, constructive conversation about how we can work together to make Scotland safer and more compassionate for everyone.”