The debate over abortion rights has flared in Morocco after a teenager’s death following an unsafe termination, but social taboos continue to stall reforms.<\/p>\n

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“If I spoke out for abortion rights in front of my brothers, I’d be risking my life,” said student Leila, 21, adding that she comes from a relatively “modern” family.<\/p>\n

In September, a 14-year-old identified as Meriem died following an unsafe procedure in a rural village in the country’s centre.<\/p>\n

The conservative North African kingdom, which criminalises abortion, has since seen growing calls for reform to women’s reproductive rights, although pervasive social attitudes and a lack of political will continue to block change.<\/p>\n

“If I said the word ‘abortion’ in my family, I’d be accused and rejected, even by my parents,” said 22-year-old Amal, a student at the University of Rabat.<\/p>\n

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– ‘Law that kills’ –<\/h2>\n

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Unless a pregnancy endangers a woman’s health, Moroccan women undergoing abortions face up to two years in jail, while those assisting them risk five years’ imprisonment.<\/p>\n

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Local organisations say that despite the heavy penalties, between 600 and 800 women have an abortion every day in the country of 38 million people — many in dangerous, unsanitary conditions.<\/p>\n

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Meriem’s was carried out “at the home of a young man who was sexually exploiting the victim”, Moroccan feminist coalition Spring of Dignity said.<\/p>\n

Her death came seven years after a royal commission recommended decriminalising the procedure in “certain cases” such as rape, incest, foetal malformation or if the mother is mentally disabled.<\/p>\n

But the report changed “nothing”, according to gynaecologist Chafik Chraibi, a campaigner for legalisation.<\/p>\n

“There’s nothing but silence, the subject isn’t a priority,” he told AFP.<\/p>\n

Chraibi, the founder of the Moroccan Association Against Clandestine Abortion, says a lack of political will is blocking any change to an “archaic” law that dates back to 1963.<\/p>\n

A draft bill to modify the legislation has been presented twice to parliament before being withdrawn without any official explanation.<\/p>\n

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Dozens of rights activists gathered outside parliament in late September to demand changes to the “law that kills”.<\/p>\n

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Families Minister Aawatif Hayar told parliament last month that the government was taking “serious interest” in changing the penal code.<\/p>\n

But any changes must “respect Islamic law and be acceptable to Moroccan society”, she said.<\/p>\n

Campaigner Chraibi said religious authorities and Moroccan conservatism were blocking moves towards decriminalisation — but added that nothing in Islamic law explicitly bans the practice.<\/p>\n

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– ‘Judicial and social violence’ –<\/h2>\n

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Morocco is far from being an outlier in the Arab world.<\/p>\n

The only North African state to allow women to choose an abortion is Tunisia, whose first post-independence president Habib Bourguiba legalised the practice in 1973, two years earlier than former colonial power France.<\/p>\n

But there is little national debate on the subject, and most women who undergo the procedure keep it a secret.<\/p>\n

A 2018 Algerian law provides for the “therapeutic termination of pregnancy”, but rights groups note this requires a medical committee’s approval and is limited to cases of mortal danger to the mother or if the baby is likely to be severely disabled.<\/p>\n

Algeria otherwise can impose a two-year jail term for women who have an abortion, while doctors who facilitate terminations face five years.<\/p>\n

Libya also criminalises abortions except when there is mortal danger to the mother, and imposes long jail terms on those carrying them out.<\/p>\n

Sentences are often reduced in cases where the procedure is undertaken to preserve the family’s “honour”. Libyan women with the means often seek abortions overseas.<\/p>\n

Moroccan activist Faouzia Yassine says the kingdom’s laws are a form of “judicial and social violence against women”.<\/p>\n

She called for a “root-and-branch reform of the penal code” and to bring it in line with “international conventions that Morocco has ratified”.<\/p>\n

“Criminalisation of abortions means restricting a woman’s freedom to control her body and shows a desire to compel her to keep a foetus against her will,” she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The debate over abortion rights has flared in Morocco after a teenager’s death following an unsafe termination, but social taboos continue to stall reforms. “If I spoke out for abortion rights in front of my brothers, I’d be risking my life,” said student Leila, 21, adding that she comes from a relatively “modern” family. In September, a 14-year-old identified as Meriem died following an unsafe procedure in a rural village in the country’s centre. The conservative North African kingdom, which criminalises abortion, has since seen growing calls for reform to women’s reproductive rights, although pervasive social attitudes and a lack […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567,562],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international-news","category-yeswecantv-news"],"yoast_head":"\n