Professor Annette Beck-Sickinger of the University of Leipzig in Germany, who had refused internship to an Indian student citing the country’s “rape problem”, has apologised on Monday for her remarks.
“I have made a mistake. I sincerely apologise to everyone whose feelings I have hurt,” Beck-Sickinger said.
“It was never my intention to make a defamatory comment about Indian society. I do not have anything against Indian students. On the contrary, I sincerely apologise to anyone whose feelings hurt I may have hurt,” she said.
This morning, Germany’s Ambassador in India Michael Steiner had sent an urgent letter to the professor strongly disapproving of her discriminating generalisations against male Indian students.
In her refusal to the male student, Professor Sickinger of the Institute of Biochemistry had refused an internship to a male Indian student citing the rape culture in India and had also said that many female professors across Europe were turning down male students from India.
In his letter to the professor, Ambassador Steiner wrote:
“It has been brought to my attention that you denied an internship to a male Indian student, giving “the rape problem in India” as a reason. Let me make it clear at the outset that I strongly object to this. The 2012 Nirbhaya rape case has refocused attention on the issue of violence against women. Rape is indeed a serious issue in India as in most countries, including Germany. In India, the Nirbhaya case has triggered a lively honest, sustained and very healthy public debate – a public debate of a quality that wouldn’t be possible in many other countries. The Indian Government and Indian civil society organisations are very committed to tackling the issue.
“Yesterday we celebrated International Women’s Day at the German Embassy here in Delhi with many local activists including many men. Your oversimplifying and discriminating generalization is an offense to these women and men ardently committed to furthering women empowerment in India; and it is an offense to millions of law-abiding, tolerant, open-minded and hard-working Indians. Let’s be clear: India is not a country of rapists.”
In her apology, Professor Annette Beck-Sickinger said four of her 30 students in her module Bioorganic Chemistry in the university’s International Masters programs are from India and two guest students from India are also participating in her current laboratory internship. According to her, the comments were taken out of context.
“I am by no means racist or xenophobic in any way,” Beck-Sickinger said.