Rabat – Moroccan Outlaws 490, a national social change movement, said they have received information about ignored sexual harassment complaints from Khadija High School in Tetouan.
According to the group, a male teacher reportedly harassed female students but the administration did not react to the filed complaints.
The sister of a victim contacted the movement to unveil the truth about the case and hope for the prosecution of the accused teacher.
“The students are afraid to speak but they still decided to hang this call on the walls of the school, in the street and on the buses of the city of Tetouan. Real warriors!” tweeted Moroccan Outlaws 490 on March 4.
The Twitter account attached a picture of a public announcement titled “Sex for Grades.” The image contained the covered-over name and contact information of the accused Arabic language teacher, urging people to act in support of the underage girls.
The expression “Sex for Grades” was widely used earlier this year in Morocco to expose sexual harassment cases within educational establishments – high schools and universities.
Following its March 4 tweet, Moroccan Outlaws 490 shared anonymous statements from neighbors as well as previous and current students of the teacher.
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On Social media, many have noted that the high school is historically an all-girls boarding school bringing together girls from “low income super conservative backgrounds” from villages around Tetouan. Their backgrounds put them in a vulnerable situation, one commenter pointed out.
With growing public support, one victim filed a complaint on March 8 at the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Tetouan on the basis of articles 485, 487, 503-1, and 503-2 of the Moroccan penal code.
The first two articles address the sexual assault of a minor by a person with authority, while article 503-1 focuses on harassment and article 503-2 tackles the sexual exploitation of minors.
Accordingly, Moroccan Outlaws 490 expects the teacher to receive a 30-year sentence.
As details on legal measures taken against the teacher are yet to be announced the alleged victims, activists, and many social media commenters say they will continue to call for strict prosecution of the harasser.
