German Foundation Highlights Morocco’s Struggle for Family Law Reform and Islamic Identity

Doha – The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), a German foundation for liberal politics, has recently shed light on Morocco’s struggle to reform its family law, known as the Moudawana, while balancing the country’s Islamic identity.

According to the foundation, the 400-article piece of legislation, which regulates the basic civil status of women in society, is at odds with the progressive constitution adopted by Morocco in 2011.

The FNF notes that despite being one of the most progressive legal systems for women in the region, with women enjoying equal access to political and economic life, numerous discriminations and disadvantages persist in Moroccan civil and criminal law.

The foundation highlights the marriage of minors, and the inheritance law, which grants women half of what men are entitled to, as two of the most hotly debated issues in the reform debate.

Remarkably, the FNF points out that the impetus for reform came from King Mohammed VI himself, who, in his capacity as political and spiritual head of state, called for the principle of equality to be realized in a speech in 2022.

When no action was taken, the monarch repeated his demand last autumn and set a deadline for a reform proposal to be submitted.

The foundation quotes Samira Muheya, President of the Women’s Rights Federation FLDF, who sees the current revision of the Moudawana as an opportunity to correct “the legal injustice, discrimination and violence against women in the text of the law or in its application.”

According to the FNF, the path to the new Moudawana is intended to be participatory, with hundreds of civil society organizations approaching the Commission with their petitions and recommendations

The foundation notes that the discourse is divided between conservative and religious forces that see the country’s Islamic identity at risk and progressive and liberal organizations that demand the law catch up with social realities.

The FNF highlights King Mohammed VI’s vague stance on the reform, with contradictory statements in his groundbreaking speech in 2022. The foundation suggests that this ambiguity may be a strategic move by the monarch to find a solution acceptable to the majority of his people.

Sebastian Vagt of the FNF states; “whatever the outcome, the reform process and the accompanying social debate in Morocco are remarkable and testify to the country’s sincere desire to continue its extraordinarily successful development of recent years, not only economically but also socially.”

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom is a German foundation that promotes individual freedom and classical liberalism. Established in 1958 by Theodor Heuss, the first president of the Federal Republic of Germany, the foundation is related to the Free Democratic Party and is committed to advancing liberal policies worldwide.