[Civsoc-mw] Should public nudity be legal?

[cammack at mweb.co.za]

I recall working in Nsanje among Moz refugees in 1989 and it was very hot. I pulled up my skirt to my knees [showing my knees] to get cooler and my colleague – a mzungu raised in Mw, while I was new to the country – berated me for public indecency! Just then a lady refugee walked by with only a chitenge around her waist, topless, and I thought, wow, how different we view what is publicly acceptable in different societies. Of course, then we had Kamuzu, who would have sent me away I suppose, but still, I think it was a reflection of different attitudes to what is acceptable nakedness.

 

d

 

From: Civsoc-mw <civsoc-mw-bounces at sdnp.org.mw> On Behalf Of Adamson S. Muula
Sent: 03 April 2019 11:43
To: civsoc-mw <civsoc-mw at sdnp.org.mw>
Cc: Nyasanet <nyasanet at listserv.icors.org>
Subject: Re: [Civsoc-mw] Should public nudity be legal?

 

Dear Tony,

 

Your question goes to core/base of what may be deemed legal, acceptable in a society. One size cannot fit all. Societies must be ready to accommodate a practice or forced to do so by those who want the practice legalized or be made acceptable. 

 

On Wed, 3 Apr 2019 at 02:30, Tony Tontholani <tonytontho at yahoo.com <mailto:tonytontho at yahoo.com> > wrote:

They say there is nothing more natural than nudity, yet public nudity is seen as anything but normal. There are certain exceptions for those willing to nude outside their homes, such as 

saunas and 

nude beaches. But beyond these specific places, public nudity is 

taboo. Events such as the 

World Annual Naked Bike Ride, and 

Spencer Tunick’s photography that involves crowds of naked people, 

scandalise the global population.

Many countries impose 

legal restrictions on public nudity, oftentimes with specific regulations for particular locations, body parts, genders and contexts. Some 

European countries have a liberal approach and allow public nudity everywhere or where it does not disturb others in a significant way. The United States, in contrast, has various laws that 

ban public nudity in one form or another as indecent exposure, public indecency or disorderly conduct. And 

some Muslim countries go far beyond what is common elsewhere: even the showing of underwear is considered indecent.

Should public nudity generally be legal, everywhere and for everyone? Or is that too scandalous of a step for our society?

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-- 

Adamson S. Muula PhD, MPH, MBBS, CPH, PGDip (Public Health Ethics), PGDip (Global Health), PGD (Palliative Care)

Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health

University of Malawi, College of Medicine

School of Public Health and Family Medicine

Department of Public Health

Chimutu Building Room 850

Private Bag 360, Chichiri

Blantyre 3

Malawi

Email: amuula at medcol.mw <mailto:amuula at medcol.mw> 

Cell: +265 884233486

Skype address: adamson.sinjanimuula

Publications list: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Muula

orcid.org/0000-0003-4412-9773 <http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4412-9773> 

Webpage: http://biostat.maths.cc.ac.mw/people/staff/Adamson_S._Muula

 

 

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