Morocco: Parliament Repeals Controversial Rape Law

Moroccan women protest discriminating against women.
23 January 2014

Monrovia — The Moroccan parliament has amended a controversial law that allowed a rapist to marry his underage victim in order to escape prosecution, according to Al Jazeera. The vote to repeal the law reportedly received the unanimous backing of the country's MPs.

The New York Times reports that the decision to review the much-criticized article 475 came to a head when the death of a 16-year girl sparked public outrage. Amina al-Filali was forced to marry the 23-year-old man who had raped her. She committed suicide seventeen months after the forced marriage.

The practice of forced marriage is still common in many parts of the Middle East and North Africa where the loss of a woman's virginity "dishonours" her family.

Last year, the rights group Amnesty International called on King Mohammed VI to scrap the law, which the group said had led several teenage survivors of sexual violence to commit suicide.

AllAfrica publishes around 400 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.