CAIRO: The Agouza Misdemeanors Court postponed on Sunday the trial of the couple arrested for holding "spouse-swapping parties to Jan. 3. Two months ago defendants Tolbah Abdel Hafez, a 48-year-old civil servant, and his 43-year-old wife Salwa Hussein, an Arabic teacher, were accused of prostitution and spreading debauchery. The couple was arrested in October for soliciting other married couples through the internet, inviting them to their home for "spouse-swapping parties. Investigators reported that the couple had confessed to having sexual relations with three other couples of the 44 who signed up for the swinging sessions . But they later denied their statements before they were transferred to court. During the primary investigations, several other suspects - including a lawyer - were arrested. The couple has been married for 14 years and have a son and a daughter. They used the pseudonyms Magdy and Samira on the website and in emails. News of the couple s arrest spurred debate among international media as well as human rights organizations. Gamal Eid, executive director of the Arab Network for Human Rights Information, condemned the arrests. "Regardless of our religious ideology and traditions, no one has the right to approve, disapprove or interfere in what a person does consensually in his own home, Eid previously told Daily News Egypt. Ahmed Sayed, an Islamist lawyer, had told Daily News Egypt that Egyptian law does not criminalize adultery unless one of the spouses presses charges against the other. The Egyptian Appeals Court has modified the definition of prostitution as engaging in sexual relations with multiple partners, and not necessarily in exchange for money. Prostitution became illegal in Egypt in 1949.
