Le Monde praises Al-Azhar's stance on harassment
Paris Special to the Reference
The French newspaper Le Monde hailed Al-Azhar's
stance on harassment after calling on the Egyptian authorities to enforce laws
that criminalize such acts and stressed the need to punish those who harass and
anyone who commits such crimes against women.
In a lengthy report entitled "Sexual
Harassment: Sin and Punishment," the French newspaper reported that the
Al-Azhar religious institution in Egypt, the largest lighthouse of Sunni Islam
in the world, condemned all forms of sexual harassment and published a clear
statement in this regard that all these acts are haraam (religiously forbidden)
and are carried out only by a perverted category which must be punished in
accordance with the law that criminalizes such acts.
"Women’s clothing or behavior has nothing to do
with any of these acts which are an attack on the dignity and freedom of
women," the newspaper quoted Al-Azhar as saying.
The French newspaper said that Al-Azhar's statement
clearly condemned the rise of such acts, which were highlighted by the media or
social networking sites. Al-Azhar demanded that the perpetrators be punished
according to the law.
