Sudanese government bans International Women’s Day

This video says about itself:

Sudan woman whipped including in the face while police laugh–Warning Graphic images

14 Dec 2010

Amenesty International say Article 152 – moral codes relating to dress, allow women and even girls to be charged for wearing trousers.

From Al Jazeera:

Women’s day event denied permission in Sudan

It is unclear why permission was denied though March 8 event had been held without incident for the past eight years.

Last updated: 09 Mar 2014 15:02

Sudanese authorities have rejected permission for an International Women’s Day event in Khartoum, despite President Omar al-Bashir’s vow that freedoms should be respected.

The women in the capital were told on Sunday that they needed additional authorisation from a government commission handling voluntary activities but that was just a delaying tactic, said Fahima Hashim, director of the Salam Centre for women’s rights.

“We didn’t get the permission” from state security agents for Saturday’s planned event, she said.

The March 8 event – marked around the world when women are recognised for their achievements – had been held without incident for the past eight years at Khartoum’s Nubian Club, Hashim told AFP.

Hashim said it was unclear why approval was denied, but it might be connected with the larger size of this year’s event.

“We had more than 30 groups joining us,” she said.

The day-long event typically features exhibitions, forums, films and concludes with a party.

In January, al-Bashir appealed for a political and economic “renaissance”, including political freedom, in the country ravaged by armed insurrection and political turmoil.

Hashim said his renaissance was just “a lot of talk.”

COMMUNISTS from six countries issued a call at the weekend for a campaign of solidarity with the Sudanese Communist Party and the staff of its banned newspaper Al-Midan. Party representative Rashid Alsheikh told a meeting in London of parties from Britain, Iran, Greece, Cyprus and Bangladesh that all copies of the paper had been confiscated by the Sudanese regime’s security forces from the beginning of January: here.

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