Lubna Ahmed Hussein has sent a message to the world, published in The Guardian. While recapping much information we already know from following her trial, Lubna makes several new key points for readers. I will summarize:

• Lubna reminds us that her case is not an isolated one. In 2008, 43,000 women were arrested in Khartoum state for clothing offences.

• The judicial process the women are subjected to involves just one policeman and a single judge — with the policeman acting as the complainant, prosecutor and sole witness. Note from Anne: Remember, there is no actual definition of which clothes are indecent, no calculations on skirt lengths or transparency of fabric. Determining “decency” is left to the arresting officer and judge.

Lubna places her case within Sudanese history and the “repressive nature” of the current government, speaking about her concerns for elections scheduled for next spring.

Admitting that the global concern has been on conflict in Darfur, Lubna reminds us that while Sudan has reaped millions in oil revenues and the city houses skyscrapers and modern hotels, the living conditions of most ordinary people have not improved.

Lastly, Lubna Hussein cites a brave history of opposition in Sudan. We know that women’s rights flourished there in the 1970s.

At a time when I am personally somewhat “under the gun” for being the ” f——— stupid American woman” interfering in her case, Lubna has made her wishes clear, regarding international support for her case and political freedoms in Sudan:

When I think of my trial, I pray that my daughters will never live in fear of these “police of security of society”. We will only be secure once the police protect us and these laws are repealed. I also pray that the next generation will see we had the courage to fight for their future before it was too late. We need Arab, African, American and European leaders to stand with us and help us make sure that the next chapter of our history is less bloody and brutal than the last. This will require conviction and boldness from their side. I hope they will display the qualities of those Sudanese men and women I most admire.

Entire article at Guardian UK: When I think of my trial, I pray my fight won’t be in vain Anne