International scrutiny and pressure works, in an update on this story. However, the law has not changed, so there has been an attempt to save face, but not actual reform: one must not be mistaken for the other. And Lubna al-Hussein remains determined not to let Sudanese authorities sweep this embarrassment under the rug. “Woman tried for wearing pants faces fine, not flogging,” from CNN, September 7:
(CNN) — A woman put on trial for wearing clothing deemed indecent by Sudanese authorities was fined Monday, but will not get the 40 lashes she could potentially have faced, her lawyer said.
Lubna al-Hussein does not intend to pay the fine, which means she will be jailed for a month, her lawyer Nabil Adib in Khartoum told CNN.
Al-Hussein, who was arrested in July for wearing pants deemed too tight and a blouse considered too sheer, will appeal to the constitutional court, Adib said.
Al-Hussein pleaded not guilty, her lawyer said. The judge did not allow her to call defense witnesses or hear a defense case, he added.
She was sentenced to pay 500 Sudanese pounds ($209) immediately or face jail, the lawyer said.
She refuses to allow anyone to pay the fine for her, the lawyer said.
Al-Hussein, a journalist who worked in the media department of the United Nations mission in Sudan, is fighting to have the law declared unconstitutional. She resigned from her U.N. position in order to waive her immunity as an international worker.
Police lobbed tear gas at people outside the courthouse Monday, and closed roads leading to the courthouse before the trial began, al-Hussein said earlier.
Throngs of people waited outside the courthouse as she made her way in, she said.
In addition to the group of lawyers defending her, al-Hussein was also represented by two Egyptian defense attorneys, she said.
The human rights organization Amnesty International called for the charges to be dropped.
“The manner in which this law has been used against women is unacceptable, and the penalty called for by the law — up to 40 lashes — abhorrent,” Tawanda Hondora, deputy director of Amnesty International’s Africa program, said in a statement.
Al-Hussein was arrested along with 18 other women on July 3 at a Khartoum restaurant when police burst in and checked women for their clothing.
“I don’t think she was targeted specifically,” Adib said. “They attack public and private parties and groups. They are called ‘morality police’ and she was just a victim of a round-up.”…
Such “round-ups” will undoubtedly happen again, if they haven’t already.