Egyptian English literature professor Mona Prince has been suspended from her job at Suez Canal University, more than a year after a video of her dancing sparked controversy online.

A copy of a decision by university head Al-Sayed Al-Sharqawy, which Prince shared online on Tuesday, showed that the university's disciplinary committee ordered her be suspended from her position three weeks ago. However, her dismissal was only announced and reported by local media on Tuesday.

Last year, the university launched investigations into Prince after she shared a video online of herself dancing on the rooftop of her home. The video, as well as other photos of Prince in a bikini, brought her under fire, with many calling her behavior inappropriate.

Following the decision, Prince pledged on Tuesday to take the matter to court.

"In the first incident of its kind in Egypt, the Arab world and the whole world, a university professor has been dismissed from her post, not because she accepts bribes, or sexually harasses her students or colleagues…or leaks exams…[but] because of the professor's pictures in a swimsuit and a video while dancing in a galabeya on her own Facebook page," Prince wrote on her Facebook page.

"Meet you in court, University of Suez," she added.

Prince had drawn criticism earlier this year when she announced that she would run for the March presidential elections, in which President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi won a second term by a landslide. However, she did not officially submit her candidacy.

The professor has repeatedly dismissed criticism against her, saying her behaviour is a matter of personal freedom that harms no one.



https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/301850.aspx