Morocco’s Justice Minister Calls Hotel Ban on Unmarried Couples ’Illegal’

"How is it that we ask adult people for a marriage certificate and tell them that they cannot enter the hotel on the pretext that they do not have one," reacted the Minister of Justice, considering "that we decide by assuming that they have come to the hotel to commit an offense. And there we commit an offense." Abdellatif Ouahbi made this statement during a meeting on the "results of the examination of Morocco’s national reports by the UN human rights mechanisms", organized by the Interministerial Delegation for Human Rights (DIDH), reports Hespress.

The Minister of Justice also denounced on this occasion the ban on women from reserving a room in a hotel in their city of residence. "It is unacceptable to ask a responsible citizen and holder of her national identity card why she wants to spend the night in a hotel located in the same city where she lives. This measure is a crime that must be punished by law," he explained, adding that "the Penal Code should contain coercive provisions against anyone who demands a document not provided for by law."

"We have a historic opportunity because we have a King who understands the evolution of things and a government that is moving in this direction. And we must move forward," said Ouahbi, who does not intend to give in to the attacks of the conservatives and assures that he will continue his fight for "the modernization of society".