SCoP condemns resumption of campaigns aganist “indecent dressing” in Khartoum
June 27, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – The opposition Sudanese Congress Party (SCoP) Monday has denounced the campaign carried out during the last couple of days in Khartoum by the Public Order Police (POP) against those wearing what it describes as “scandalous outfits”.
Last week, Abu Shanab met with the Ethiopian and Eritrean ambassadors to Khartoum and asked them to urge their nationals living in the Sudanese capital to wear “decent outfits”.
SCoP underscored that the POP carried out a large arrest campaign during the past couple of days in various areas of the Khartoum locality and particularly along the Nile Avenue.
“It became obvious that this campaign aims to bring men and women before the public order courts and they would be punished by flogging and fining or may be locked up for wearing [revealing] outfits according to the Commissioner’s law” read the statement .
The statement pointed to Sudanese people strive against the public order laws, saying that personal freedom is an inherent right guaranteed by all international laws and norms.
Civil society activists continued to demand the Sudanese government to repeal laws that violate human rights and contradict with the 2005 Sudanese constitution and the international conventions including the Public Order Act (POA).
The statement also said the POP seeks to strip the citizens of their right of assembly which is a key doorway for gaining civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.
“The return of the arrest campaigns makes us demand all people to engage in an organized political and legal resistance program that upholds the right of choosing one’s clothes and seeks to abolish this decision and all laws that violate personal freedom under the so called public order laws” further read the statement.
The controversial POP is tasked with regulating behaviour of men and women according to Islamic Shar’ia law. Many critics say that the law is not applied uniformly and in many cases allows for abuses by POP officers particularly against women.
However, authorities claim that the POP is enforcing the POA which will prevent the negative behaviors in the society.
In 2009, France granted residency to the Sudanese journalist, Lubna Hussein, who was charged with public indecency after she was arrested along with 12 other women who were wearing trousers at a Khartoum restaurant.
The Sudanese government at the time suffered a major PR blow after Hussein’s case swept the world media.
Hussein resigned from her post at the then United Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) to waive her immunity bestowed upon employees of the world body and face trial to use her case to draw attention to the POA which allows flogging as a punishment for any acts or wearing clothing that are viewed as offending morals.
Following international pressure, the Sudanese judge did not impose a flogging sentence and instead ordered Hussein to pay a fine of 500 pounds ($200) or else be jailed for 30 days after being convicted of indecent dressing.
She refused to pay the fine but was released well before her one month jail sentence expired after the head of the pro-government Journalist Syndicate went ahead and paid it.
(ST)