Morocco Struggles to Modernize Family Code Amid Equality Debates

Equality between men and women in inheritance matters is far from a reality in Morocco. "Civil society has evolved very quickly and the Moudawana, or Family Code, must change and adapt. The 2011 Constitution established gender equality, but the legislation has not yet been adapted," said Amina Khalid, 57, secretary general of Insaf, an association defending women’s rights. Despite the reforms initiated by Mohammed VI in 2003 and 2004, there are still discriminations and inequalities in the Family Code which "prohibits the marriage of minors (up to 18 years old), but allows judges to authorize a girl to marry an adult man," denounces Khalid.

In 2022, more than 20,000 requests for minor marriages were registered in Morocco, of which two-thirds (13,652) were authorized by the magistrates, according to the annual report of the Attorney General’s Office. In his speech during the Throne Feast last July, King Mohammed VI announced a reform of the Family Code, demanded by civil society for more than ten years. "It is a necessary change," supports Ouafa Hajji, 65, leader of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP) in Rabat, calling for a "real debate" on fundamental freedoms and gender equality and to "promote women in political and economic decision-making bodies".

With the current Code, women are discriminated against in matters of inheritance rights. They are deprived of part or all of the family inheritance. Similarly, a divorced woman loses custody of the children if she remarries. Yet 16.7% of households are supported by women, according to 2020 data from the High Commission for Planning (HCP). "If women contribute to the wealth of families, they have a right to a fair and equitable inheritance," concludes Amina Khalid. For Nezha Skali, 73, former Minister of the Family (2007-2011), "the grave injustice of losing child custody for divorced women who remarry must be repaired" and "the inheritance legislation must be reformed, which is in contradiction with the Constitution and the international conventions ratified by Morocco".

Women in particular suffer from the tradition of Taasib (male lineage), which forces them to share their property with uncles or cousins, who can deprive them of their entire patrimony. The Islamists of the Party of Justice and Development (PJD) oppose the revision of the Moudawana, which they consider a threat to "national stability". "For Khadija Rouggany, 47, a family law specialist, "Morocco is very behind in terms of equality, but discrimination against women, deprived of their rights, is one of the worst burdens".