Women's group calls for Strauss-Kahn to resign

Washington-based Gender Action said yesterday the International Monetary Fund "needs new leadership" whatever the outcome of Strauss-Kahn's case, which awaits a New York grand jury's assessment of the evidence for trial.

"Strauss-Kahn's arrest and the growing body of allegations of sexual misconduct against him mandate an expeditious move to new leadership at the IMF," said Elaine Zuckerman, the president of the group, which monitors the work of the IMF, World Bank and other international financial institutions.

"Strauss-Kahn's continued leadership of the IMF is untenable," she said in a statement.
Zuckerman is a former World Bank economist who founded Gender Action in 2002 to press development banks and institutions to better serve the interests of women and girls in their programs.

Strauss-Kahn was arrested Saturday and formally charged in New York on Monday with seven counts involving sexual assault and attempted rape of a maid in the luxury Times Square Sofitel hotel.

A judge denied him bail and he was remanded to the sprawling Rikers Island prison.
Strauss-Kahn's lawyer says he denies all the charges.