Muslim women in Morocco are demanding a female-only beach so they can enjoy the summer weather without having to worry about keeping their bodies covered. The women's rights group are campaigning to have their own beach where they can sunbathe with their burkas off - without ‘disobeying Allah’ or ‘being sexually harassed’.
But the move has sparked controversy in the country - as liberals and traditionalists have clashed over the campaign.
Feminist Noor Alhoda said they are a 'conservative' group, who want to be able to both go to the beach and conform with Islamic law - as Islam bans women from showing certain parts of their body in public. She added that they do not want to ‘disobey Allah by wearing swimsuits in front of men gazing at us’.
‘After the end of Ramadan, everyone wants to enjoy the summer holidays - but the women are not able to enjoy the party and the swimming in the same way as the men,' she wrote. The women argue that - with a coastline that stretches ‘hundreds of kilometres’ - it should be possible for the country to have both mixed-sex and women-only beaches.
One campaign supporter wrote on the Facebook page: ‘Like men, we also need a private place to cool off during the scorching summer months, without mixing with the opposite sex.’ Another added: ‘Sexual harassment is alarmingly increasing even in the streets – let alone beaches – women need a women-only beach to swim carefree.’
Supporters of the campaign claim sexual harassment is an increasing problem on the city’s streets, ‘especially at summer time’. In Morocco, attitudes towards women's bodies are conservative, which can put women who are deemed to be inappropriately dressed at risk of attack.
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