Moroccan Lawmaker Defends Abortion Rights, Criticizes Criminalization of Premarital Sex

At war with his fellow deputies who want to ban sex outside of marriage, Deputy Balafrej persists.

In an interview with Hespress, Omar Bafrej addressed the issue of voluntary termination of pregnancy and sexual relations outside of marriage.

To this end, he announces his support while displaying his choice for the right to abortion "but during the first 90 days of the fetus’s existence".

Recalling the case of the young journalist convicted, the deputy found the legal proceedings against Hajar Raïssouni unacceptable, for a consensual relationship with a person she was going to marry and being accused of illegal abortion.

For the elected representative of the people, there is no question of imposing Article 490 of the Code. "I asked for it to be repealed," he recalls in the same media, stating that we cannot condemn "two consenting adults who have had consensual sexual relations in a private place".

Drawing on the experience of other Muslim countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Turkey, he argues that in these countries, consensual relations between adults are not criminalized, thus disapproving of the decision of the Kingdom where moreover the criminal law has remained unchanged since the end of the French protectorate.

According to the same source, the deputy suggests that the Moroccan law respect the intelligence of the citizens. In his opinion, political actors must speak without hypocrisy. "The average age of marriage in Morocco is now 28 years old. Should we imprison Moroccans aged 18 to 28 who have sexual relations or solve their problems?", questioned the people’s representative in the same media.

Further on, he believes that if the Islamists are against individual freedoms, it is up to them to propose compulsory marriage for all Moroccans aged 18, so that they do not have to engage in illegal sexual relations.