A leaflet calling people to demonstrate on May 20 on Saida's public beach to denounce the assault on a woman wearing a swimsuit on the beach. (Photo of the leaflet circulating on social networks)
BEIRUT — Mohammad Saoudi, the mayor of Saida Saturday banned two rival gatherings scheduled for Sunday in the South Lebanon town's public beach, called in response to the harassment of four swimsuit-wearing beach-goers.
Accompanied by supporters, two sheikhs approached a pair of couples and asked them to leave Saida's beach on May 14, saying the two women were "indecently" attired. The beach-goers said the men had thrown tennis balls, plastic bottles of water and sand at them.
Contacted the day of the incident, Saoudi told L'Orient-Le Jour he condemned the altercation but had been powerless to prevent it.
In a poster circulating on social media since Friday, feminist groups and activists called for a rally and a press conference to be held Sunday at 11 a.m. on the beach where the incident took place, to plead for "freedom of expression" and moral tolerance.
Calls for a counter-demonstration also circulated on social media Saturday, to protest "in favor of modesty, virtue, and against nudity."
A leaflet calling for a counter-demonstration to denounce the defense of four swimsuit-wearing beach-goers on Saida's public beach. (Photo of the leaflet circulating on social networks)
In response to these calls for contending demonstrations, Saoudi issued a statement Saturday saying that "the municipality has still not opened the public beach.
"It is therefore prohibited to organize any activity or protest without prior municipal agreement to ensure the safety of people, the city of Saida and its inhabitants," he continued.
The mayor also said South Lebanon mohafez Mansour Daou, the security services and the army would be notified of this decision.
'I feel unsafe'
Mayssa Hanouni Yaafouri, one of the women harassed that day, filed a complaint against the sheikhs who responsible for the intrusion.
She expressed her "anger" at Saoudi's decision. "This is oppression and an attack on our freedom of expression," she told L'Orient-Le Jour Saturday, adding, "I feel unsafe in the city, I even took my 16-year-old son out of Saida fearing something would happen to him."
The May 14 assault sparked reactions from religious leaders and civil society groups.
Saida's League of Ulama (religious scholars) Tuesday denied all allegations of violence against beach-goers on the part of sheikhs and their supporters, denouncing "the suspicious and systematic media campaign that targets Saida, its morals, its sheikhs and its population."
In its own statement, a group of local associations denounced the lack of municipal responsiveness to enforce law and order.
Additional reporting contributed by Mario Doueiry.
