Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – In the wake of a mob attack on a gay man in Fez on June 29, New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement asking Moroccan authorities to abolish Article 489 of the Penal Code, which criminalizes “acts against nature when committed between members of the same sex.”
The statement said that HRW is aware of a series of cases in which men have been imprisoned under Article 489, arguing that many of trials “appear to have been unfair.”
“Morocco should abolish Article 489 and decriminalize all sexual relations between consenting adults,” the statement reads.
The statement goes so far as to posit that the combination of a country that enforces anti-gay laws, a justice system that denies a fair trial, and a social stigma attached to homosexuality is “a formula for serious violations of the rights to privacy and equality and other basic rights.“
HRW also accused Moroccan officials of making homophobic comments, saying that Justice Minister Mustafa Ramid made several anti-gay statements since the assault of a gay man in Fez last month.
“He [MustafaRamid] said homosexuals should avoid provoking society, and that citizens must not enforce the law themselves, as though the victim had been breaking the law due to his appearance,” HRW said.
The statement noted that the Article 24 of Morocco’s 2011 Constitution guarantees “the right of all persons to protection of their private life,” adding that this right was absent in the previous constitution and should lead to decriminalizing consensual same-sex conduct.
“The Justice Ministry should know that no one is prosecuted for crimes in violation of international law,” HRW concluded.
© Morocco World News. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, rewritten or redistributed without permission
