On 8 September Sheryin Mekawyy, an Egyptian influencer from Mansoura who had fallen out of public favor announced on Facebook that she had married her fiancée, Reem Mohsen. “Finally, after so many attempts to persuade people and our families, we are in the same house!” wrote the girl. The post went immediately viral: first on the African country’s social profiles, then on every Arabic page worldwide, ending up on many online media sites and beyond. Congratulations rained down. There was no lack of praise for the great act of courage. However, the negative reactions were much more frequent and the heavy threats and insults reminded of the tragic story of Sarah Hijazi.
On the web, the requests for intervention have exponentially increased and apparently, a lawyer named Ashraf Farhat has gone to the police to report the two women, accusing them of debauchery and incitement to homosexuality. Meanwhile, the story was escalated by online news, press agencies, radios, and Arabic newspapers using indignant tones but without reaching the prominence of the other recent international news about the first gay marriage recognized in Tunisia. Fortunately! Because both weddings were hoaxes.
Entirely a lie (obviously)
In fact, the Dakahlia governorate’s police -of which Mansoura is the capital- confirmed what some more attentive people kept repeating: both Sheryin’s and Reem’s profile were created on July 23rd and are both fakes. An investigation, addressing the whole story, has been opened and it will be handled by the section of the police dealing with internet crimes.
Meanwhile, the real Sheryin Mekawyy made herself heard in a video posted on YouTube, explaining she is not a lesbian and that someone used her photos to open a fake Facebook account. She also threatened to report anyone who continues to spread this hoax. This scandal leaves us with a bitter taste, showing how deeply rooted homophobia is in Egypt and how much bad information continues to feed it.
Pier Cesare Notaro
translated by Barbara Burgio
©2020 Il Grande Colibrì
image: Il Grande Colibrì
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