By Anoushka Rawat

Abstract

Throughout history, Moroccan culture has been deeply enmeshed with patriarchal ideas that are sustained by religious narratives. Following its independence in 1956, Islamic doctrine gained more traction to take control over public and private spaces. The all-male drafting committee for the first Family Code of 1957, symbolises a severe under-representation of women’s voices and experiences in a major legal framework. Presently, owing to various feminist movements and the Post-Arab Spring reforms, society has moved from what it used to be during the late 1950s. This article attempts to track the changes that Moroccan society has undergone.  

Introduction 

The Moroccan society, placed under a religious veil, pedestalled women just to domestic chores and familial obligations. Society outlaid a woman’s life in three stages wherein, initially, she was to be a virtuous daughter, an obedient wife and then a mother. Furthermore, the Mudawwana obliged wives to unconditionally submit to and respect their husbands and their close relatives; permitted polygamy, and gave the right of divorce to men. It explicitly implied that women were of inferior status. This inequality was further exacerbated by the lack of representation of women in the public sphere ranging from educational institutions to leadership roles.  

The tense political atmosphere around the 1960s and 1970s negatively affected women’s empowerment. The ruling monarch and political parties were reluctant to deal with gender issues as it could lead to turmoil and widen the gap between the ruling and the dominant religious class. However, with the rise of political and economic reforms, innumerable women’s organizations dotted the landscape and took a pioneering role in feminism. These included Women’s Union Action, the Democratic Association of Moroccan Women, Moroccan Association of Women’s Rights among others. Before the reformations entailed, the 90s saw the sprouting of Islamist associations, which split the feminist movement into two camps: the Secularists and the Islamists; the Secularists being inspired by the ideas of the West and the “secularisation of the sacred law”, the Islamists stood for reformations under the bracket of the sacred law. 

By 2004, the women’s associations lobbied for reforms to the Mudawwana. On the marital front, the minimum age of marriage was pushed to 18 from 15 years of age and polygamy was restricted. Furthermore, it annulled the Wilaya (women now could marry without authorisation from their father or male elder) and abolished Qiwama (male guardianship). It also facilitated women with the right to secure divorce (Khula) and child custody which gave women an equal status in their marriage. However, the reforms weren’t enough to bridge the gap between men and women, as the latter were bracketed under liminal citizenship as per the country’s Nationality Code of 1958. Under this, Moroccan women married to foreign nationals could not pass their Moroccan citizenship to their spouses and children, whereas men could do the same. The crucial amendment was incorporated in 2007, which sought to grant equal citizenship to both genders. Although the above-said clauses brought equality in the private sphere, the participation of women in the public sphere was still limited. This was rectified through the Post-Arab Spring gains and the commencement of the Feminist Spring. 

Post Arab Spring (2011) Reforms 

The Arab Spring and the subsequent kicking-in of democratisation provided women with a platform to initiate a plethora of reforms. With the newly drafted constitution of 2011, came Article 19 which explicitly stated both men and women to be of equal status before the law and granted them equality of participation in political, cultural, economic and social arenas. The objective of increased participation of women in political space was attained through the passage of the law which established a reservation of 60 seats (out of 395;15% reservation for women) in the Parliament. Further, the second law prescribed the political parties to be more gender equal, although the representation wasn’t made obligatory. 

Post-Arab Spring gains included the watershed moment of Morocco’s complete withdrawal of reservations over the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Earlier, Morocco had expressed its scepticism over articles stipulating constitutional and legal equality. Articles 32 and 34 (outlining the Fundamental Rights and Liberties of Women, Children and the Disabled), Article 21 (prohibition of discrimination against women) and Article 175 (prohibition of retraction of the articles) were inserted too. Although this might give a sense of perfection in the text, there remains ambiguity over the supremacy of international treaties over domestic law, as this hasn’t been made clear by the new constitution.  

The Arab Spring turned into the “Spring of Dignity” with women’s associations rallying to put across laws regarding gender violence and rape. Until 2014 and the amendment to Article 475 of the Penal Code, charges of rape could be escaped if the rapist and its victim could be subsequently tied up in matrimony (often against her wishes). With the amendment, the prosecution would take its due course in all circumstances. Eventually, Morocco made adultery punishable under the law, but marital rape remains unpenalized. These aforementioned “bare minimum clauses” made Morocco one of the progressive MENA (Middle East and Northern Africa) countries.

Progress in numbers

This section attempts to analyse the depths of gender inequality through quantitative methods. As per the Global Gender Gap Index (2023), Morocco is ranked 136 (out of 146), which leads to the extrapolation that the society is still highly unequal. With respect to political empowerment amongst women, 24% of the seats in the national parliament and 7 positions (out of the cabinet of 24) are held by women, but there has never been a female head of state.

With regards to increased female participation, the government in 2021, initiated a new law that would oblige the Boards of Public Limited Companies to target at least 30% representation of women by 2024. This makes Morocco, the first country in MENA to get women in top managerial positions. The above has been attained through a high female literacy rate which stands at 67% (2021). The percentage of female labour force accounts for 21.4% (2022) which has dipped from 25.3% (in 2019) owing to the pandemic. Compared with the labour force participation for men (69.7%), the number for women is drastically lower. Additionally, the percentage of active women in the economy has hardly altered since the 1990’s.

Even though the aforementioned numbers have remarkably transformed society, Moroccan women still spend seven times as much time on unpaid domestic labour and care work than men. In 2012, women in Morocco spent 20.8% of their day on unpaid work while men spent 3% of their day.

Conclusion 

Owing to numerous government initiatives and changes since the country’s independence in 1956, women now enjoy a more advanced and equal position in society, albeit not complete equality. The laws were not effectively implemented; hence their enactment is insufficient. For instance, women’s ability to file for divorce is still restricted, abortion is prohibited, which restricts women’s control over their bodies, and widows’ and daughters’ inheritance rights are not equal. The statistics only demonstrate the progress because urban areas like Rabat, Casablanca, and Marrakesh have higher rates of female empowerment, while rural areas continue to have archaic and conservative attitudes. This demonstrates how changes have not spread to these sectors, leading to a lower rank of Morocco in the Global Gender Gap Index. 

The journey towards gender equality requires sustained commitment, awareness, and collaboration from all segments of society. Morocco’s progress in addressing gender inequality will not only enhance the well-being of its citizens but also contribute to a more just and equitable global community. 

Author’s Bio

Anoushka Rawat is a second-year student of Bachelors in Global Affairs, at the Jindal School of International Affairs. She is deeply interested in the area of gender studies and varied perspectives of feminism.

Image Source: https://statemag.state.gov/2019/02/project-soar-empowers-teenage-girls-in-rural-morocco/