Sudan court adjourns ‘lashes for trousers’ case

A SUDANESE woman facing 40 lashes for wearing trousers in public made her first appearance in a court packed with supporters yesterday, in what her lawyer described as a test case in Sudan’s decency laws.

There were chaotic scenes as Lubna Hussein, a former journalist who works for the United Nations, attended the hearing wearing the same green trousers that got her arrested for immodest dress.

Indecency cases are not uncommon in Sudan. But Hussein has attracted attention by publicising her case, inviting journalists to hearings and using it to campaign against dress codes sporadically imposed in the capital.