Egypt bans 'free hug day'

Cairo: Egyptian authorities have vowed to arrest any participant in an unprecedented hug festival planned for Thursday in a famed resort of the conservative country.

Online activists have called for holding a “free hug day” in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada, saying their aim is to highlight the cosmopolitan facet of the city, which is a key Egyptian tourist destination.

However, police have not minced words about what they feel about the would-be organisers.

“We have not received any application for organising this event,” said chief of the tourism police Ahmad Chahin. “Such events cannot be approved because they contradict Egyptian laws and public morality. Anyone participating in such an activity would be arrested and prosecuted,” Chahin said in press remarks.

Local authorities in Hurghada have reported nothing unusual in the designated venue for the controversial event.

In an online message circulated in recent weeks, the anonymous organisers called for a hug congregation in New Marina, an epicentre of Hurghada.

“We’d like to be like the outside world, having freedom to do what we want without interference from others,” read the message. “Let everyone exchange hugs and kisses,” the message added.

The call has sparked outrage in the country, with critics decrying it as a move aimed at inciting debauchery, an offence punishable in Egypt by up to three years in prison.

Although Egypt has no religious police like some other Muslim countries, showing emotions in public is socially frowned upon.