Egypt

Video: University professor faces legal, societal backlash for posting video of her belly dancing on Facebook

Mona Prince, an English language professor at Suez University, is being interrogated following an administrative order issued by the university after a video of her belly dancing was circulated across social media outlets.

She originally published the video on her Facebook page as a public post which was then shared by a number of students, sparking intense criticism. 
 
Students and others described her behavior in the video as "disgraceful", especially as a university professor should be a role model for young people. 
 
Maher Mosbah, the dean of Suez University, told Egypt Independent Wednesday that Prince has been referred to investigations, as her actions violate the Egyptian universities' code of conduct under Article 94, which defines the duties and obligations of any university professor in Egypt.
 
He explained: "Article 94 obliges any university professor in Egypt to abide to certain rules and morals, and to avoid any behavior that may damage a university's reputation." 
 
Talk show host Wael el-Ebrashi discussed the incident on his Tuesday show which was aired on the privately-run channel Dream. 
 
Prince came out to defend her decision to post the video publically, saying that this is a matter of personal freedom and no one has the right or the authority to interfere or comment on it.
 
On Ebrashi's show, Prince said she does not feel shy or ashamed of any videos of her dancing or any photos of her swimming in a bikini. She said this video should not reflect on the integrity of her job or on the university, as she is free to do whatever she wants away from the university campus. 
 
"The university should only be authorized to investigate me when I do not perform well as an English language professor," she said on the talk show. "No one can comment or criticize my actions away from my profession and the university." 
 
The dean, however, said this video does not fall under her personal freedoms when the footage was shared and has caused outrage among students, as well as defaming the professor's image. 
 
"The footage is not acceptable behavior from a university professor who should be a role model for students. The code of conduct ban such behavior, even in a country like Germany a university professor was referred to investigation for being in a night club," Mosbah said. 
 
In response to the wide-spread attacks by social media users against her character, Prince released a new video of her dancing on her Facebook page, with a caption reading: "I will never stop laughing, dancing, singing and writing."
 
She also wrote a number of Facebook posts on her personal account to demonstrate her indifference to the investigations and the backlash. She explained that she will undertake all necessary legal measures in dealing with the university administration concerning the videos.
 

Related Articles

Back to top button