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Moroccan television channel 2M and Morocco’s General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) are set to launch next Monday, January 25, an awareness campaign about violence against women.
The digital campaign, named “Al 3ounf, Mansktouch 3lih” (Let’s not remain silent about violence), seeks to raise awareness about the legal mechanisms that are in place to protect women in Morocco.
The campaign’s logo includes the word “Violence” in Arabic, written in bold and surrounded by smaller expressions representing various forms of violence.
The words and expressions include blackmail, insult, beating, wounding, rape, harassment, economic violence, and psychological violence.
Below the words appears a drawing of an orange scarf, representing the color of the UN Women campaign “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.” The scarf bears the expression “Let’s not remain silent about it” in Arabic.
The campaign will include a series of short videos broadcasted on 2M, its website, its mobile application, and its pages on social networks.
The videos will provide simple explanations about Law 103-13, relating to violence against women, and how survivors can receive assistance.
The campaign urges girls and women in Morocco to denounce all acts of gender-based violence and to have courage in standing against their aggressors.
A 45-second teaser video for the campaign shows several police officers, men and women, addressing messages to girls and women.
“Nobody has the right to harm a woman, no matter their gender, their relationship [with the woman], or their title,” said one police officer in the video.
Women “should not hesitate to file complaints and trust security services,” another added.
A third officer declared that caring for female survivors of violence is among DGSN’s main priorities.
Read also: Morocco’s DGSN Establishes Support Units for Women Victims of Violence
The initiative comes as Moroccan lawmakers and security institutions appear to become more aware about the urgency of eradicating violence against women in Morocco.
In September 2019, DGSN introduced support units for girls and women who are survivors of gender-based violence in all its administrations. The units provide survivors with legal guidance and psychological support.
One year earlier, in September 2018, Morocco enacted Law 103-13 to criminalize sexual harassment and assault in public spaces, as well as blackmail.
Many activists, however, argued that, contrary to how the Moroccan government promoted it, Law 103-13 was far from perfect and contained many loopholes.
