Morocco approves law protecting women from violence

The Moroccan Parliament adopted with a majority vote on Wednesday a new law to fight violence against women. On the occasion, the minister for women and family affairs, Bassima Hakkawi, posted on her Facebook account: “This law, our newborn, came to life after a difficult and costly gestation… This legislation has a story that goes back to 15 years when the idea was first generated but did not find the proper context and climate to develop and move forward until after the conditions matured and were met with determination,” Hakkawi maintained. Similarly, the Federation of the Democratic League for Women’s Rights said that despite its positivity, the legislation did not go far enough to include some basic features that define violence as a form of discrimination against women and a violation of their rights nor did it contemplate protection, prevention and reparation issues. For her part, Leila Emily, advocate for women’s rights and the president of White Hand Association, told BBC Trending program that the human rights lawyers and activists view this new step as positive but have their observations to improve the text further. To recall, the Tunisian Parliament has approved in July a comprehensive law to eliminate violence against women. (Al Diyar, February 16, 2018)

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