Morocco’s Ruling Party Reaffirms Opposition to Same-Sex Marriage

"The RNI does not want discord in society, and does not seek to oppose women to men. What we want is a family in the traditional sense of the term, a husband and a wife, as we have always known historically, and not a marriage between two women or two men," said Rachid Talbi Alami, a member of the RNI political bureau, during the third regional colloquium of RNI women on "Women’s empowerment between challenges and achievements under the interim assessment of the government", organized by the RNI women’s organization of the Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima region, under the theme "Together to strengthen women’s participation socially, economically and politically".

Recalling that the Family Code, instituted by King Mohammed VI in 2004, had recognized several rights for women, he indicated that its revision after twenty years aims to do more equitable justice to women and the family. He therefore emphasized the need to "preserve the family as it is, give rights to women, reject violence against them or their subjugation". According to the RNI regional coordinator for Tanger-Tétouan-Al Hoceima, "there is no difference between the Moroccan man and the Moroccan woman, and when the woman is by the man’s side, success is there".

The RNI regional official also highlighted the Moroccan women who have played major roles throughout history. According to him, the beauty of northern Morocco lies in the beauty and intelligence of the women of the region. However, he notes that gender parity is not yet a reality. He describes the mechanical application of parity as a mistaken issue. His party is nevertheless making efforts. "25% of RNI parliamentarians are women, and we have increased the representation of women in elected councils to 32%," but "we have not yet reached the parity we wish for, but we have worked well in this direction," said Talbi Alami.