Morocco’s Top Islamic Body Opposes Changes to Abortion Law

The provisions of the Penal Code concerning abortion should not be subject to any modification, "except what the interest requires and what ijtihad allows". This is the opinion of the Supreme Council of Ulema. In a statement, they added that the drafting of this law is the result of painstaking work and consultations involving several institutions.

The Council of Ulema, chaired by King Mohammed VI, refuses that this public debate becomes a political controversy. With this communiqué, the council is trying to respond to Abderrahim Chikhi, the president of the Movement for Unity and Reform (MUR), who had called for a position from the Supreme Council of Ulema on the debate around abortion.

On October 11 last in Rabat, during his speech at the conference on individual freedoms organized by the MUR, he had declared that we should not attack those who call for a modification of the law on abortion.