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 AFROL
Gender Profiles:
Morocco
Morocco, being one of the poorest countries in the Maghreb due to
misadministration, has made astonishingly little effort in promoting women's
right. Thus, women's situation in Morocco remains among the worst on the
continent. Women's rights organisations are however active, trying to address
the huge barriers for women in traditional society, further enhanced by backward
legislation.
Spousal violence against women is common. While physical abuse is a legal ground for divorce, a court only grants it if the woman is able to provide two witnesses to the abuse. Even medical certificates are not sufficient.
Sexual assaults often go unreported because of the stigma attached to the loss of virginity. While not provided for by law, victim's families may offer rapists the opportunity to marry their victims in order to preserve the honor of the family.
Young girls are much less likely to be sent to school than are
boys. They are often exploited as domestic servants.
In order to marry, a woman generally is required to obtain the permission of her
"tutor," or legal guardian, usually her father.
Under Islamic law and tradition, rather than asking for a divorce, a man simply may repudiate his wife outside of court.
A woman seeking a divorce has few practical alternatives. She may offer her husband money to agree to a divorce (known as a khol'a divorce). The husband must agree to the divorce and is allowed to specify the amount to be paid, without limit.
Under the Moudouwana (Code of Personal Status), women inherit only half as much as male
heirs. When a woman inherits property, male relatives may pressure her to relinquish her interest. A woman also may file for a judicial divorce if her husband takes a second wife, if he abandons her, or if he physically abuses her. However, divorce procedures in these cases are lengthy and complicated.
Every
Moroccan woman averagely gives birth to 3,13 children (2000 est).
Social data
Life expectancy: Total population: 69,13 years
male: 66,92 years
female: 71,44 years (2000 est.)
Infant mortality: 49,72 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Alphabetization rate: total population: 43,7%
male: 56,6%
female: 31% (1995 est.)
Medical services: 62% of the population have access to medical services.
(2.941 persons per doctor)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1,05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1,04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0,98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0,84 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Religious data: Muslim 99%, traditional African religions
0,88%, Christian 0,12%.
Family and tradition
In order to marry, a woman generally is required to obtain the permission of her
"tutor," or legal guardian, usually her father. Only in unusual circumstances may she act as her own
"tutor."
It is far easier for a man to divorce his wife than for a woman to divorce her husband. Under Islamic law and tradition, rather than asking for a divorce, a man simply may repudiate his wife outside of court. Under the 1993 reforms to the
Moudouwana, a woman's presence in court is required in order for her husband to divorce her, although women's groups report that this law frequently is ignored. However, human rights activists reported that, in a recent NGO-sponsored test, officials refused to order a divorce without the wife being present, despite offers of bribes. Nevertheless, women's groups complain that men resort to ruses to evade the new legal restrictions. The divorce may be finalized even over the woman's objections, although in such cases the court grants her unspecified allowance rights.
A woman seeking a divorce has few practical alternatives. She may offer her husband money to agree to a divorce (known as a khol'a divorce). The husband must agree to the divorce and is allowed to specify the amount to be paid, without limit. According to women's groups, many men pressure their wives to pursue this kind of divorce. A woman also may file for a judicial divorce if her husband takes a second wife, if he abandons her, or if he physically abuses her. However, divorce procedures in these cases are lengthy and complicated. In November 1998 the Minister of Islamic Affairs proposed the institutionalization of additions to the basic marriage contract that would outline the rights and duties agreed upon between husband and wife, and permit legal recourse for the enforcement of the contract.
Under the Criminal Code, women generally are accorded the same treatment as men, but this is not the case for family and estate law, which is based on the
Moudouwana. Under the Moudouwana, women inherit only half as much as male heirs. Moreover, even where the law provides for equal status, cultural norms often prevent a woman from exercising those rights. For example, when a woman inherits property, male relatives may pressure her to relinquish her interest.
A problem facing orphans of both sexes is their lack of civil status. In general men are registered at local government offices; their wives and unmarried children are included in this registration, which confers civil status. Civil status is necessary to obtain a birth certificate, passport, or marriage license. If a father does not register his child, the child is without civil status and the benefits of citizenship. It is possible for an individual to self-register; however, the process is long and cumbersome. While any child, regardless of parentage, may be registered within a month of birth, a court order is required if registration does not take place in that time. Abandoned children sometimes receive kafala
(state-sponsored care).
Gender sensitivity in society
Although the Constitution states that all citizens are equal, non-Muslims and women face discrimination in the law and traditional practice.
Women suffer various forms of legal and cultural discrimination. The civil law status of women is governed by the
Moudouwana, or Code of Personal Status, which is based on the Malikite school of Islamic law. Although the Moudouwana was reformed in 1993, women's groups still complain of unequal treatment, particularly under the laws governing marriage, divorce, and inheritance.
While many well-educated women pursue careers in law, medicine, education, and government service, few make it to the top echelons of their professions. Women constitute approximately 35 percent of the work force, with the majority in the industrial, service, and teaching sectors. The Government reports that the illiteracy rate for women is 67 percent (and 89 percent in rural areas), compared with 41 percent for men. Women in rural areas suffer the most from inequality. Rural women perform most difficult physical labor, and the literacy rate in the countryside is significantly lower for women than for men. Girls are much less likely to be sent to school than are boys, especially in rural areas where the quality of schooling is inferior to urban areas, and demands on girls' time for household chores often prevent school attendance. However, women who do earn secondary school diplomas have equal access to university education.
According to a 1997 government survey, 76 NGO's work to advance women's rights and to promote women's issues. Among these are the Democratic Association of Moroccan Women, the Union for Women's Action, and the Moroccan Association for Women's Rights, which advocate enhanced political and civil rights, as well as numerous NGO's that provide shelters for battered women, teach women basic hygiene, family planning, and child care, and educate illiterate women.
The Moroccan Government claims to have an active policy promoting the rights of women combining legislative and legal approaches. It cooperates with agencies, gathers data and conducts studies, such as one on women in politics and another on the image of women in the media.
Health data
Access to potable water: 65%
Medical services: 62% of the population have access to medical services.
(2.941 persons per doctor)
Maternal mortality rate: 610/100.000
Infant mortality: 49,72 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): N.A.
Violence against women
Spousal violence is common. Although a battered wife has the right to complain to the police, as a practical matter, she would do so only if prepared to bring criminal charges. While physical abuse is a legal ground for divorce, a court only grants it if the woman is able to provide two witnesses to the abuse. Even medical certificates are not sufficient. If the court finds against the woman, she is returned to her husband's home. Consequently, few women report abuses to the authorities.
The Criminal Code provides for severe punishment for men convicted of rape or sexually assaulting a woman or a girl. The defendants in such cases bear the burden of proving their innocence. However, sexual assaults often go unreported because of the stigma attached to the loss of virginity. While not provided for by law, victim's families may offer rapists the opportunity to marry their victims in order to preserve the honor of the family. The law is more lenient toward men with respect to crimes committed against their wives; for example, a light sentence may be accorded a man who murders his wife after catching her in the act of adultery.
The Government has had difficulty addressing the problem of child labor. Young girls in particular are exploited as domestic servants. Teenage prostitution in urban centers has been estimated in the tens of thousands by NGO activists. The
clientele comprises both foreign tourists and Moroccans. More young girls than boys are involved; however, young boys also work as prostitutes. The practice of adoptive servitude, in which families adopt young rural girls and use them as domestic servants in their homes, is prevalent. Credible reports of physical and psychological abuse in such circumstances are widespread. Some orphanages have been charged as knowing accomplices in this practice; however, more often parents of rural girls "contract" their daughters to wealthier urban families and collect the salaries for their work as maids. Adoptive servitude is accepted socially, has only recently begun to attract public criticism, and is unregulated by the Government.
Main sources: U.S. Department of State, CIA,
UN, HRW, Mundo negro, Moroccan Government
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