Alaa Saad, a journalist traveling alone last January, He has been contacted Al Safwa Utopia Hotel in Port Said, Egypt to book a room for the night. She was rejected by the hotel because she was a single woman. No explanation was given beyond the phrase “Single women are not allowed“.
Saad tried to call the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities hotline twice to report the incident, to no avail. Eventually, he filed a formal complaint with the police.
She too take To social media to tell the story and get it received Lots of support. Her experience resonated with many, as it represented an ongoing reality that millions of Egyptian women navigate every day. Their right to move freely in public spaces is conditional, subject to informal control, and dependent on tolerance of strangers.
The incident sparked a wave of solidarity from civil society organizations like The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, the Edraak Foundation for Development and Equality, in addition to legal lawyers, including an activist and a lawyer, Nihad Abu Al-Qumsan And a lawyer Heba Adel. Opponents He argues What happened to Saad was not an isolated act of bias on the part of one hotel, but rather a symptom of entrenched social and cultural patterns that have long restricted women’s presence in Egyptian public life, patterns officially prohibited by the country’s constitution and laws.
Egyptian constitutional protection is clear.
Article 62 It guarantees personal freedom, including freedom of movement, as an inalienable right. Article 53 bar Sex discrimination, among other reasons. A Law 2022 Hotel and tourism establishments expressly prohibit denying guests entry or accommodation on the basis of gender.
However, over the years, women have continued to face the same bias in hotels. In the investigation a report In June 2021, Raseef22 published the story of four women, one of whom filed a lawsuit, talking about their personal suffering after they were refused reception in hotels. Report He appears Although the law remains clear, this phenomenon is considered a widespread informal practice.
Fighting for Saad is the New Woman Foundation (NWF), an Egyptian feminist NGO founded in 1984, and its legal representation.
The Public Prosecution opened an investigation into the report on the basis of a violation Article 161 of the Penal Code, which criminalizes discrimination on the basis of sex when denied equal opportunities. It took Saad’s statement, after which a hearing was scheduled for March 10.
On the day of the session, it was presented to the Public Prosecution in East Port Said to survey The director charges because the hotel’s ban on unaccompanied women amounts to an internal policy and not a criminal act.
NWF Named This logic is a legal shield for discrimination, which it undermines Article 161 From the Penal Code. On April 7, the East Port Said Prosecution Office filed an appeal requesting that the acquittal be suspended and the director be retried. Another hearing to have She was appointed On April 27 before the Misdemeanor Court of Appeal.
The gap between the law and its implementation, especially for women who travel alone and work outside the home, remains wide. According to To the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR)
“Defending Alaa Saad’s right to housing is not defending a hotel reservation,” says A Statement of solidarity It was signed by dozens of activists and legal lawyers. “It is a defense of women’s right to exist in public spaces without stigma, suspicion or guardianship.”
The statement calls for Egypt Commitments Under the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which Calls Signatory states must dismantle social and cultural norms that make women subordinate, and guarantee equal rights to freedom of movement and choice of residence.
The truth is that Saad had to involve the police in order to be able to exercise his basic right It remains inexplicable For lawyers and women alike.