Sudan's judiciary has launched an investigation into the public flogging of a woman after footage of her being whipped repeatedly by laughing policemen was posted on the web.The YouTube video shows an unidentified woman in a long black dress and a headscarf being ordered to sit down in a parking lot surrounded by policemen and bystanders who do not intervene.A uniformed policeman proceeds to whip her all over her body as she screams in pain and begs them to stop. A second officer laughs when he realises he is being filmed, before joining in whipping the woman, the punishment lasts a minute and a half.Flogging is fairly common is northern Sudan, where sharia law is often enforced arbitrarily. But the cruel and nonchalant behaviour of the security forces and the distress of the victim in this case caused a stir in the country and amongst Sudanese in exile, it has even attracted condemnation in some pro-government newspapers. added by: sbacker
