21st century
Khartoum, Sudan
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was a Sudanese journalist who became an international symbol of opposition to the enforcement of public-decency laws. Arrested in Khartoum in July 2009 with other women for wearing trousers, she requested a trial and publicized the case. She was convicted but received a fine rather than flogging after international pressure, turning the proceedings into a widely observed dispute over women’s rights and Sharia-based penal enforcement.
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The Story
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was a Sudanese journalist whose arrest brought international attention to the enforcement of Sudanese decency laws. In July 2009, she and twelve other women were arrested for wearing slacks in a Khartoum restaurant. While ten women immediately pleaded guilty, accepted ten lashes, and were released, al-Hussein requested a trial.
Her professional position enabled her to publicize the proceedings, and the case quickly attracted international attention from groups concerned with women’s rights. A judge found her guilty of violating Sudan’s decency laws. The applicable legal framework allowed a fine and as many as forty lashes for an indecent act or indecent clothing, but the court ultimately imposed a fine equivalent to approximately US$200 and spared her the whipping.
The case also generated public confrontation in Khartoum. Supporters, most of them women, opposed whipping, while men demanding harsh punishment confronted them; riot police intervened and arrests followed. Al-Hussein’s refusal to accept the case quietly transformed an individual prosecution into a public challenge to the interpretation and enforcement of Sudan’s public-morality legislation.
21st century
Khartoum, Sudan
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was a Sudanese journalist who became an international symbol of opposition to the enforcement of public-decency laws. Arrested in Khartoum in July 2009 with other women for wearing trousers, she requested a trial and publicized the case. She was convicted but received a fine rather than flogging after international pressure, turning the proceedings into a widely observed dispute over women’s rights and Sharia-based penal enforcement.
Continue exploring
The Story
Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein was a Sudanese journalist whose arrest brought international attention to the enforcement of Sudanese decency laws. In July 2009, she and twelve other women were arrested for wearing slacks in a Khartoum restaurant. While ten women immediately pleaded guilty, accepted ten lashes, and were released, al-Hussein requested a trial.
Her professional position enabled her to publicize the proceedings, and the case quickly attracted international attention from groups concerned with women’s rights. A judge found her guilty of violating Sudan’s decency laws. The applicable legal framework allowed a fine and as many as forty lashes for an indecent act or indecent clothing, but the court ultimately imposed a fine equivalent to approximately US$200 and spared her the whipping.
The case also generated public confrontation in Khartoum. Supporters, most of them women, opposed whipping, while men demanding harsh punishment confronted them; riot police intervened and arrests followed. Al-Hussein’s refusal to accept the case quietly transformed an individual prosecution into a public challenge to the interpretation and enforcement of Sudan’s public-morality legislation.