A t-shirt with the slogan "It's not rape, it's a snuggle with a struggle" has been removed from sale by SM Department Stores, which operates more than 40 locations across south-east Asia.
The garment was spotted by New Orleans writer Karen Junawicz, who posted a photo to her Facebook page.
Really SM Department Store? In the boy's section?
"It's Not Rape, It's A Snuggle With A Struggle?"
SM–the same mall that has the daily angelus and refused to show Tim Burton's "Sweeney Todd" in the cinemas?
Boys listen to Tita Karen–if a girl says NO and pushes you away, just err on the side of caution, she likely means NO. And go watch "Sweeney Todd."
WTF, SM.
Her posting was shared more than 4,000 times, and the company apologized, promising to immediately pull all the t-shirts sourced from the relevant distributor.
"We have immediately pulled out all the T-shirts of the consignor that distributes them, and we are investigating why it was included in our delivery of assorted t-shirts," said SM Supermalls, the Phillipines largest mall operator.
Time's Elizabeth Barber reports that customers were not happy with the excuses.
On Facebook, commenters on the original photo sharply criticized the department store for seeking to "hide behind [its] consignment agreements," as one commenter put it, and called on the store to make donations to women's crisis centers.
In 2013, the Philippine National Police Women and Children Protection Center recorded 5,493 reported rapes of women and children — a record high for the nation, according to GMA News Online.
