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Rabat – A group of Moroccans participated in Gay Pride Canal Parade 2016 in Amsterdam last Saturday, August 6th, according to a video shared on YouTube.
The one-minute video shows the Moroccan flag in the front of a boat and a long banner on its side, which reads, “Join our Freedom, Fell Free to Join Us.”
Moroccans aboard the boat, all wearing the same blue garment, are seen dancing to Reggada music, a local folkloric dance from the east region of Morocco.
The same video shows a Moroccan female waving a placard that reads, “Stop 489,” in which she calls on Moroccan authorities to abolish Article 489 of the Penal Code, which criminalizes “unnatural acts committed between individuals of the same sex.”
The video also shows other Moroccans holding placards saying different things, in both Arabic and English, such as “Freedom, Life, and Proud.”
The video shows some passengers waving the rainbow flag of the LGBT movement and holding colorful balloons. One of the passengers in the back of the boat is seen waving an Amazigh flag, showing pride in his Amazigh identity.
In 2001, the Netherlands became the first country to legalize gay marriage. According to Euronews, Job Cohen, the Mayor of Amsterdam, was the first registrar in the world who legalized the marriage of a same-sex couple.
While LGBT rights are oppressed in 76 countries in the world, the Netherlands criminalizes discrimination towards homosexuals.
