Rabat – King Mohammed VI has granted a royal pardon to Moroccan journalist Hajar Raissouni. The Al Akhbar al Yaoum journalist received a one-year prison sentence from the Rabat court for undergoing an illegal abortion and sex outside marriage.
A press release from the Moroccan Ministry of Justice announced the news of her pardon on Wednesday, October 16.
The Moroccan Ministry of Justice said that the royal pardon seeks to preserve Raissouni’s future and that of her fiance, who were going to build a family in accordance with Morocco’s law “despite the error they may have committed,” which led to their arrest.
Moroccan police arrested Raissouni along with her fiance, a Sudanese national, in the entrance of a clinic monitored for practicing illegal abortion.
Both Raissouni and her fiance denied abortion claims.
The royal pardon also included the doctor and medical staff arrested for performing the alleged illegal abortion.
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The royal pardon also included the doctor and medical staff arrested for performing the alleged illegal abortion.
Hajar Raissouni’s case sparked nationwide created debate and divided public opinion in Morocco. The case also drew criticism from human rights activists and international NGOs. The activists and associations called for the immediate release of the journalist.
On October 2, more than 300 people rallied in front of the Moroccan parliament in protest against the Rabat’s Court of First Instance’s verdict in the case.
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The activists condemned the arrest and prosecution of Raissouni for abortion, calling for individualism.
The Moroccan law criminalizes abortion when is not practiced to preserve the mother’s physical health or in case of an urgent medical threat.
Sex outside marriage is also a crime in Morocco, according to Article 16 of the Family Code.
