MPs Question Ministers On Indecent Dressing

By Kini Nsom

The issue of indecent dressing among women in Cameroon, dominated discussions in Parliament last week as MPs quizzed members of government in a Question and Answer session. The MP for the Sangmalima constituency in the South Province, Hon. Francois Esama, said “it seems that the rights women are clamouring for is to go about nude and drink heavily.” He expressed worries that female students dress in a sexy manner which exposes them to sexual harassment.

Esama said on March 8, women in Sangmalima drank heavily, got drunk, became lousy and went home late in the name of celebrating the International Women’s Day. He asked the Minister of Women’s Affairs what government was doing to make sure that women dress properly. According to him, women are mothers of the nation and should show good comportment.

MP for the Momo constituency, Hon. P.C Fonso, who spoke to The Post, said women should dress well and not expose their bodies. He said the ultimate aim of any girl who emxposes her body is to attract men who will in turn ask for sex. “There ought to be some decency in the way young girls dress," he said. “The younger generation wants to go Western, they exhibit their womanhood which is not a tradition in this country,” said Hon. Catherine Meboka Eposi, MP for the Fako constituency. She added that “young boys are seen in torn jeans trousers. They will tell you it’s fashion, but it is an eyesore.’’ The issue, she said, however, should be handled with care.

No Gender Bias
Reacting to the concerns of the MPs, the Minister of Women Affairs, Catherine BakaMbock, carefully warded off the apparent chauvinistic nature of the complaints. She said government would take measures to curb indecent dressing, but averred that the issue has to be treated without gender bias.

Street Talk
According to Denis Fon, a university student in Yaounde, some girls virtually go naked in the name of following fashion. Said he, "it was a taboo to see the navel of a woman. But now girls leave their navels open for men to see. Some deliberately pull their pants above their trousers for the public to see. There is gross exaggeration in the way they do it.”

One Ndi, a pastor, told The Post that “sexy dressing is unacceptable in our society. It is immoral, illegal and represents only the work of the devil.”

But Randy Wah Kum, a photographer in the Obili neighbourhood, took great exception. Hear him, “there is nothing wrong about sexy dressing. I think I don’t hate it.” He said those men who complain about sexy dressing by girls are weak people who cannot control their emotions as soon as they see the thighs of a young girl. He said it is unfair to talk only about young girls when old mothers in the villages move about with their breasts and abdomens completely exposed.

Noise Noubissie Fotso, a businessman, said sexy dressing portrays liberty and freedom that reign in the country. He said the sexy girls should be left alone.

Girls Talk
Dressed in a tight miniskirt, Sylvie Aboutou, a salesgirl in Yaounde, goes about her business with ease. “I dress the way I like. I know what is in fashion. I don’t care who says what my dressing is like,” she told The Post.

At the students’ residential area in Yaounde, Bonamoussadi, The Post met one female student, Jennifer. She wore what is called “pantalon elephant” that was very tight around her buttocks. Added to this, was a tight-fitting sleeveless blouse that barely covered the upper part of her body. Her abdomen was bare, revealing a patch of hair around her navel.

“ I love the way I dress, every young girl likes it, but older people like the MPs think our generation is crazy,” Jennifer said. At 18, she said she is easily carried away by the latest fashion wind. According to her, their fashion is dictated by film, music and TV stars.

Indecent Dressing Is Criminal
Those who practise indecent dressing may just be ignorant of the law or enjoying the impunity that reigns in the country. The Cameroon penal code punishes public indecency. A Yaounde-based lawyer, Barrister Buba Ndifiembou, said, “ girls who go half-naked can be prosecuted and, if found guilty, they can go to prison for up to one year or pay a fine of FCFA 100.000.” He said article 263 of the Cameroon penal, which addresses the issue is in tandem with section 29 (2) of the UN Universal Deceleration of Human Rights, which cautions against indecent dressing.

Comments

[Nkamongwa FONKAM]

I don't want to call it indecent dressing but immoral dressing.Well, I want to think girls dress the way they do today becuase societal ills and globalisation.The best thing to do is to try to provide a solution to the social ills and to a large extent,impose an embargo on the importation of some of these dresses.
Well,parents and communities should check the way their daughters dress.One thing I must comment is that there are so many things which have to be done to these girls apart from indecent dressing.That is the use of the internet.Girls posts their pictures nude in search for boyfriends and husbands in the diaspora.
The issue needs a lot of moral education.In the country where I live,moral education in one of the fundamental things that is taught in schools.I think,in Cameroon, if we want to stop this social ill, then moral education will be a necessary and an efficient tool.

[Nso Collivan]

My brothers and sisters in the struggle for freedom I salute you all. I think the time have come for the Sons and Daughters of AMBAZONIA to know that the time for keeping our identity for the struggle for liberation secret has now come to an end. As I talk to you from this prison of what we call Europe I tell you that this time the invisible will become visible. I am very happy to know that we are begging to see and understand where we belong. The destiny of our land depends on us all. Like it or not we are not going to carry the suffering of our people to another generation we are going to face it now so as to give a free life and a free land of AMBAZOINA to our unborn children.
We all have to think about it we do not have to rush.
To all of us in the Diaspora I want you all to go to quiet places, Spend a few hours alone, look at all the beautiful things that you may see around you the amazing life that you are living then ask your self these questions: Were is my home? What is home to me? Is home that which I am living now? How am I accepted in this home that I am trying to build now? Do I have any reasons of thinking to go home one day? When you talk to your parents on the phone what kind of feelings do you have? Dose it mean any thing to you if you never see them again? My dearest people our land is crying out loud for help we most save our land. AMBAZONIA MOST BE FREE.
In whatever way that you can wherever you are we most come together and fight and together free our land.
GOD BLESS AMBAZONIA.

COLLIVAN NSO.
Berlin Active group for the cause.
Ambazonia.

.

[Nso Collivan]

MPS and MINISTERS of EVIL, I think you people had better start thinking of some positive things to talk about. Why do you complain about girls indecent dressing when you are the people behind this indecent and immorality. How much have you old fathers change your attitude of living your matrimonial homes to go after your friends daughters. Tell me what will change in your attitudes if this girl starts dressing decently or even change to reverend sisters, I am sure you people even keep some of this reverent sisters as your night nurses.
Who do you people think you are playing with in that country? The youths? You better start thinking fast before this country becomes to small to accommodate all of us.
I don’t want to think that this is still another way of diversifying very important issues.
Just take a look at what is going on in Cameroon all the youths are been scared away to foreign countries, where is the prospect of Cameroon with out the youths. Why are you this old people so greedy and selfish. What are the Emancipation and Empowerment plans you have for the youths of Cameroon I suppose you will not tell me that FRANCE is stopping all the emancipation and empowerment programmes in Cameroon so we can always depend on them.
Hon P.C Fonso the younger generation is going western it is not the tradition of our country well understood. Corruption and embezzlement is a western tradition too and most not be practise in our country.
Collivan Nso.

[Neba Funiba]

Parliament in Cameroon meets twice a year and this is all that it has to offer? Instead of debating ways by which the infrastructure in Cameroon can be rehabilitated, MPs waste tax money discussing how women dress. Instead of launching an inquiry into the gross mismanagement of the country's resources, parliament is discussing about dress codes. Instead of discussing how the situation regarding teachers' salaries can be ameliorated, MPs are talking about how women dress. Can any of those MPs cite any dress-code related statutes in the constitution? It is only in Cameroon where pertinent issues do not mean a thing that morality--dress code--is given such legislative importance. Of course parliamentarians can squable over dress codes since everything else is by presidential decree. This is what happens in pseudo-democratic systems.

[Dr. N. F. Awasom]

It is just wonderful. Keep it up!

[c g ngwa]

Thanks the Editor for giving me this uppotunity to put down a few comment.Indecency is too spread in this country that even the blind can see it.This unwanted phenomenon can only be eradicated if this should start from the family level.Can you imagine that a four-year-old child is already being trained by the mother(though the father usually gives the money but it is the mother who buys this dresses)to start putting on such dresses at such a tender age then what more of a teenager and an adolescent to whom you cannot easily convince.Even this aside,our mothers themselves refused to accept that they are old thus you find them fighting now and then over these dresses causing uor young ones(mostly the girls in this case) to look for their rights.When I was young around the 87s I remember my mum will put on a loin called wrapper and my elder sister and aunt will put on skirts that cross their knees towards their feet but now what I see is very terrible-mothers simply do no longer exist only young girls are seen everywhere.

[mulberry bags]

Thanks, I'm going to have nightmares tonight.