Sex Getting More Complicated In Islamic Nations
A woman is killed in Syria for exposing her breasts to lactate her son. Two belly dancers are arrested in Egypt for ‘inciting debauchery‘ after they showed off a little skin in their online dance video. A woman is slammed in Iran for showing too much fringe. The labelled female bureaucrats wearing too much make-up would be fined 1000 riyals ($266) in Saudi Arabia. All these examples are clear indications of the deteriorating condition of freedom of sex in the Islamic countries.
It was a rather underwhelming moment when Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi approved a committee tasked with improving the morals and values in his country. Efforts like these, which are supposedly undertaken to eliminate sex-related crimes and reduce sexual harassment, should have been welcomed by the public, but experiences of the people in Middle Eastern Countries suggest it would only put a violent edge to other harmless activities.
Islamic countries are known to be extremely rigid for women, but their laws regarding sex are not too liberal for males either. Earlier this year, Egyptian police accused a couple of living together without being married, something that is not forbidden by Egyptian law.
According to Gulf News, an Egyptian couple was arrested for organizing an orgy via a website run by an Iraqi Kurd. The Cairo couple, who have children of their own and operated under the pseudonyms Magdy and Samira on the internet, could face up to three years in prison if convicted of facilitating prostitution.
This incident was met with public outrage, and both the public and the human right activists were quick to attack the move by the police as a violation of human rights. The case raises serious issues about the whole process and the privacy rights of those arrested. The right of police to intercept the electronic correspondence was duly questioned.
#Egypt arrests #men for ‘debauchery’ after hosting ‘#gay bath house orgy’: Egyptian police… http://t.co/HKlH74Y43e
— Usum (@usumtwit) December 8, 2014
In July 2015, a Sudanese Christian woman was arrested for wearing trousers, an act that falls into the criminal code of Sudan. As reported by the Guardian, she narrowly escaped the punishment of 40 lashes.
Two months ago, a popular Saudi Arabian poet, Ashraf Fayadh, was sentenced to death. He was accused of apostasy and of having unlawful relations with several women, whose images he reportedly stored in his phone. He has denied these allegations.
Before the incident, he had posted a video showing the religious police whipping a man. His supporters strongly believe this is the act of retribution by the police.
Saudi Arabia will BEHEAD poet/artist ASHRAF FAYADH for his poetry! Keep Shouting #FreeFayad https://t.co/qTa6CgXa3Y pic.twitter.com/rKxsGA2jaH
— Fahmy Foundation (@FahmyFoundation) January 2, 2016
The situation in moderately liberal Islamic countries is also worsening. Even in countries like Jordan, there are several instances of women being brutally killed for the crime of upholding family honor. The culprits, usually the senior males from the family (father or brother), manage to avoid punishment. A woman in Beirut was told that if she went with a man in the villages of Lebanon, people would say, “Look, she’s seeing him and they’re not married.”
The codes of morality are tough in Islamic countries; a minor faux pas may lead to the death of an individual. This is probably the direst time these countries have witnessed, and with the emergence of IS and new rules being implemented, the situation does not look to improve.
But there is a glimmer of hope left; dating apps like Grindr and Tinder have a considerable number of users in the countries of Middle East. When parts of popular shows or movies like Game of Thrones are censored, there is a heavy increase in web traffic to watch the uncensored version. All these instances imply that people are starting to get fed up.
Iranian President Hassan Rohani reportedly wants to stop religious police from fining women for the pettiest of reasons like failing to conceal their hair, wrists, and bottoms. These laws, which have been implemented to a far lesser extent than desired, were hugely popular in Iran.
The Islamic codes of ethics and morality are extremely tough and without a degree of absolution. It is a painful fact that if something is not done, the situation will continue to be abysmal for the freedom of sex in Islam-dominated nations.
