Morocco Debates Inheritance Equality on International Women’s Day

Equality in inheritance, between women and men, is one of the most important demands that continue to provoke a wide debate in Morocco between intellectuals, researchers and ulemas to turn into a societal debate. The subject comes up again and again on the public scene, ending in divergent opinions between a group that considers this issue a societal necessity and one of the main pillars to achieve complete equality between the sexes, and those who think that this issue should not be the subject of a debate, reports the MAP.

Latifa Bouchoua indicated to the MAP that her organization has "evaluated the Family Code, 14 years after its publication, and considers that there are certain chapters that require a complete revision in order to establish the principle of equality between men and women in this area". She pointed out that the demands of her federation as well as the other components of the Moroccan Women’s Movement on the issue of equality in inheritance between the sexes "are not incompatible with the Muslim religion". For her, the demands of the Moroccan Women’s Movement are not "violations of religious texts, but rather an invitation to take into account social changes".

The president of the Local Council of Ulemas of the prefecture of Skhirate-Témara, Lahcen Sguenfle, does not share this view. For him, "the sharing of inheritance is a divine right that cannot be compromised". He stressed that "it is in no way permissible to modify the provisions regarding inheritances mentioned in Surat An-nisa". The text, he says, is "unambiguous and cannot be altered under any slogan or appellation".

But Latifa Bouchoua persists in thinking that "the need is imperative for equality in inheritance given the number of complaints the association receives from women and men who fear for the fate of their daughters after their death".