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Women Attacked Over Uganda’s Confusing ‘Miniskirt Ban’

Women Attacked Over Uganda’s Confusing ‘Miniskirt Ban’

From The Guardian

Around 60 female activists and their supporters, including men, gathered at the Uganda National Theatre in Kampala. In a peaceful protest organised by the End Mini-Skirt Harassment Coalition, the women, many clad in black miniskirts and above-the-knee dresses, carried signs that read “Thou shall not touch my miniskirt”, and “Lokodo hold your libido”. The gathering was spirited, just as the response to the so-called miniskirt ban, which was supposedly signed into law on 6 February under the Anti-Pornography Act, but is now being withdrawn by the cabinet for review, has been tongue-in-cheek. “Uganda should dress its population in nothing but onesies,” wrote the organisers of Kampala’s monthly FashionCorps event on their Facebook page. “These ubiquitous adult baby-gros cover up those naughty breasts, buttocks and thighs and as an unexpected side-benefit they quickly dampen any sexual ardour between wearers, whatever their gender.”

But the realities of the apparent law are no laughing matter. According to a report by Uganda’s New Vision newspaper, in the eastern part of the country, seven men were arrested for allegedly targeting women in miniskirts and stripping them naked. The women were said to be on their way to church at the time. According to a report in the Daily Monitor, mobs, including bikers claiming to help police enforce the law, have undressed eight women wearing miniskirts and even two men wearing low-slung trousers, in Eastern Uganda, in the past week.

Read more at The Guardian