A SUDANESE WOMAN CHARGED FOR WEARING TROUSERS, AQUITTED

Women in northern Sudan usually dress in traditional outfits that include a large shawl [GALLO/GETTY]

A Sudanese court has adjourned the case of a woman who was arrested and charged with dressing indecently after she was seen wearing trousers in a Khartoum cafe.

• A judge on Wednesday deferred the case of Lubna Ahmed al-Hussein, a noted columnist and a press officer at the United Nations Mission in Sudan, after she waived the immunity given to UN workers.
• "The court gave Lubna the choice either to accept immunity from the UN or to waive that and go on with the trial," Nabil Adeeb, her lawyer, said.
• But al-Hussein, who has made her trial a public campaign, inviting local and foreign journalists to attend, told the packed court: "I wish to resign from the UN, I wish this court case to continue."
• Al-Hussein was arrested, along with 13 other women, in a raid on a Khartoum cafe in early July and charged with breaching Islamic law.
• Public order cases in Sudan are usually dealt with quickly and 10 of the women were fined about $120 and given 10 lashes as punishment, but al-Hussein demanded a lawyer and delayed her trial.
• Women in northern Sudan usually dress in traditional outfits that include a shawl over their head and shoulders. Western dress is uncommon. Sharia, or Islamic law, governs the north of Sudan.

Source: Al Jazeera