Aliaa Magda al-Mahdi An Egyptian Student Who Has Publication Her Nude Photos On The Internet

An Egyptian student who was with the publication of her nude photos on the Internet as an expression of free speech caused a scandal. Aliaa Magda Elmahdi presented show pictures in her blog that she dressed only in stockings and wrote that the photos were "cries for a society of violence, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and hypocrisy." Elmahdi solved with the publication of a wave of indignation. Thousands of letters indicate the 20-year-old mentally disturbed as prostitutes or as.

Nudity is frowned upon heavily in Egypt, even the artistic depiction of naked people is considered immoral. In a country where many women wear headscarves and even those who do not, at least keep their arms and legs covered, is the publication of the images an almost unheard-of provocation. Representatives of the most influential conservative Islamic group, the Salafist warned their followers of the negative influence of the liberals on the morality of the Egyptians.

But many liberal Egyptians are not happy with the publication. Sayed el-Chimni, who describes himself as a secular, said on Wednesday night in a television talk show: "The secular movement damaged the entire front of the eyes of those who describe themselves as the virtuous." He said he could not criticize Elmahdi but directly, as a liberal because he supports all forms of free speech.

Elmahdi prudish Egyptian society has not provoked the first time. Together with her friend Karim Amer she put a video on the net that shows how they were thrown out of a public park because they had demonstrated their affection for each other openly.

Many users of social networks on the Internet rallied behind Elmahdi. Ahmed Awadalla tweeted: "I am completely dumbfounded by her courage." Emad Nasr Zikri Elmahdis blog wrote: "We must learn to separate nudity from sex." Before the influence of fundamentalist forces in Egypt, there have also been nude models in art academies for anatomical studies.

In particular, the Salafists are considered sexist. They want to segregation along the lines of Saudi Arabia. At an election rally ahead of parliamentary elections on 28 November Salafists in Alexandria recently had covered a statue that represents the mermaids. Moreover, a spokesman for the Salafists had refused to be interviewed by a journalist on television, although the woman was wearing a headscarf and even a wall in the studio had been built.