Rabat – Around 34% of Moroccans are calling to reform the inheritance laws in Morocco, indicated a survey by the Association of Moroccan Women for Research and Development, in partnership with the National Council for Human Rights (CNDH).
CNDH’s president Amina Bouayach explained that many families, especially those who do not have a son, are increasingly resorting to other legal alternatives to prevent the exploitation of their daughters following the death of the father.
According to Ta’sib inheritance law, a female orphan who lacks a brother must share the inheritance with the distant relatives of the deceased parent. In addition, male relatives usually receive double the inheritance amount offered to women.
However, despite such inequities, the study also concluded that 44% of Moroccans oppose reviewing Morocco’s inheritance laws, while 22% refuse to state their opinion.
In recent years, Morocco has witnessed a growing debate concerning the country’s inheritance laws. Critics have described inheritance regulations as “another form of violence against Moroccan women” and demanded reform in Morocco’s Family Code to preserve women’s right to equal treatment in inheritance.
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Many argue that Morocco’s inheritance laws are an outdated remnant of a society where men were the sole providers for the family. “Times have changed,” Bouayach said, referring to 2020 data released by Morocco’s High Commission for Planning (HCP) which indicated that 16.7% of Moroccan households are female-headed.
Activists also claim that the immediate family deserves the entire inheritance and should not be legally obliged to split the deceased’s estate and properties with distant relatives. When a family loses the father, the critics point out, his relatives typically do not support the children and their mother financially.
In 2018, Moroccan public figures, including university professors, doctors, and lawyers, launched a petition to abolish the Ta’sib inheritance law.
In the same year, the Tunisian government approved a law that granted men and women equal inheritance rights.
Nevertheless, as inheritance laws are based on the Quran and Sharia law, opponents of inheritance reform claim that it would serve as an unacceptable violation of Islamic Law.
