So the verdict is out. A court in Khartoum has fined Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein 500 Sudanese pounds (approximately US$200) for wearing ”indecent” trousers. She was not given any lashing of the cane. However the court also ruled that if Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein does not pay the fine, she will have to serve a prison term of one month.
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein, who worked for the UN Mission in Sudan, had earlier waived her immunity so that the trial could proceed. She was charged under Article 152 of the Sudanese criminal law for indecent dressing and could have been given up to 40 lashes of the cane.
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was determined to publicise her case so as to get Article 152 of the Sudanese criminal law either repealed or changed. Lubna Hussein and many women activists feel that this particular law is vague, and as such, it gives police officers great latitude to decide what constitutes decent and acceptable attires.
Lubna Hussein told reporters after the verdict: “I won’t pay. I’d rather go to prison.” She has also refused to allow anyone to pay the fine for her. Her lawyer said: “She will stay in prison, she doesn’t want to give the verdict any legitimacy. She thinks she was unfairly tried and convicted, and was not given a proper chance to put her defence case.” Her lawyer added that Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein would appeal to both the Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court. For failing to pay the fine, Lubna Hussein has been taken to the women’s prison in Omdurman to serve a one month jail sentence.
Outside the court room there were approximately 150 demonstrators supporting Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein. But riot police fired tear gas and baton-charged into the demonstrators. Press reports said 47 women demonstrators, some of whom wore trousers, were detained by police.
In an article written by Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein for the Guradian newspaper in London, she summed up her position as follows: “When I think of my trial, I pray that my daughters will never live in fear of these police… We will only be secure once the police protect us and these laws are repealed.”
But the riot police were not the only ones confronting the pro-Lubna Hussein demonstrators outside the court room. There were also dozens of men dressed in traditional Islamic attire shouting and confronting the women. These men were demanding that Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein be given a harsh punishment by the judge. Press reports said these men were describing the women as prostitutes. There were clashes between the pro-Lubna and the anti-Lubna demonstrators.
Meanwhile let’s not forget that there is another case brewing in Malaysia. In that case Malaysian model Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno was charged with drinking alcohol in public. The judge already sentenced her to a fine and six lashes of the cane. The problem there is how to find a face saving way to spare her the lashing. In Lubna Hussein’s case, the judge did not impose the caning punishment.
Think about it. What does this verdict on the Sudan caning case mean? Does it mean that imposing a caning sentence is too harsh a punishment for wearing trousers? If so, what about the other women who were caught at the same place with Lubna Hussein, also wearing trousers? Why were they caned and not Lubna Hussein? One protester by the name of Sawsan Hassan el-Showaya was quoted in the press as saying: “Lubna has given us a chance. She is very brave. Thousands of girls have been beaten since the 1990s, but Lubna is the first one not to keep silent.” She is in prison now, and will appeal. The Sudan caning case may still not be closed!
Related posts:
Sudan Caning – Will Case Against Lubna Be Dismissed?
Sudan Caning Case – Update
Why Different Standards For Caning?
Model Caning Case – Latest Developments
I read somewhere that she was wearing the same attire in court as that that got her arrested for indecent dressing. There was no rebuke from the judge on her blouse – at least none was reported.
If there is absolutely no pain, i don’t understand why there is so much attention. I read that she also had a revealing blouse, don’t get me wrong i don’t support the strict Islamic dress code. However you can get stiff fines in the US and Europe also for being improperly dressed.
They are trying to say that caning a woman is different from caning a man. For a woman, there is apparently no pain, so presumably, no injuries. But how to cane without pain?
How is the flogging done? Is there any chance that the person being flogged can get permanent injuries?
Fined for wearing pants? I wonder what the penalty will be for wearing um… shorts? Where’s the line drawn?