Rabat – Morocco’s Ministry of Culture announced that “Lesbian Diaries” by Fatima Zahra Amzkar will not be featured at Rabat’s 2022 International Book Fair.

The statement came after a campaign opposing the presence of the book and its author, following the posting of flyers and promotional material for the novel that promised a book signing event at the fair.

The ministry said the book was never planned to be in the fair or allowed to, as it allegedly wasn’t in the list of approved books. The ministry further claimed that the publisher had intended to promote the book at the fair without approval.

Speaking with MWN, the author of the novel pushed back on the ministry’s claims, saying that if that was the reason behind the decision, it would have been pulled on day one.

“It was only removed following a campaign that started last night,” she said on Thursday. “Some people started campaigns against me and popularized hashtags.”

Following the announcement of a book signing event by Amzkar at the book fair, an online campaign started with hashtags such as #NoToHomosexuality that called for the boycotting of the fair.

Opponents said the book causes “moral degradation,” citing Moroccan laws where homosexuality remains a crime.

“The state has decided to take the side of people who live with darkness and intolerance,” Amzkar added to MWN, detailing what she described as a coordinated attack against her. “Everyday I receive insults and death threats, I feel a credible threat to my life.”

‘Lesbian Diaries’

The novel, written in Arabic, centers around the struggles of the LGBTQ+ community in Morocco, detailing abuse that the main character faces from her family and society.

“I wanted to share the unspoken and existing stories related to social issues, child marriage, and other problems that are prevalent in our society,” Amzkar told MWN back in January.

The author said she wanted to dispel misconceptions and misgivings that people in the country have around sexual minority groups.

Read also: ‘Lesbian Diaries’: Fatima Zahra Amzkar Tackles Plight of Morocco’s LGBT Community

LGBTQ+ people in Morocco consistently face oppression on social and legal levels under the pretexts of religious and cultural values.

Article 489 of the Moroccan penal code criminalizes “lewd or unnatural acts with an individual of the same sex,” and same-sex relations are punishable by lengthy jail times and fines.

Despite calls from local organizations and international organizations to decriminalize same-sex relations in Morocco, the government has rejected the idea, and no political party had made statements in support of LGBTQ+ rights.