Morocco: Incidences of honour killings, recent cases and state protection (2004)

Current information on honour killings in Morocco could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. However, various sources list Morocco among countries where honour killings have been reported (La Libre Belgique 4 Apr. 2003; The Gauntlet 15 Mar. 2003, Amnesty Now n.d.; The Daily Star 9 Sept. 2004).

Regarding honour killings practices, a summer 2004 report in Ms. Magazine, described as providing "investigative reporting and feminist political analysis" (Ms. Magazine n.d.), stated that "men who murder their wives are exempt from punishment by law in Syria, Morocco and Haiti." In the newsletter of the University of Calgary undergraduate students, Aida Sadr stated that Morocco Kingdom is among countries where "honour killings are a socially sanctioned practice" (The Gauntlet 15 Mar. 2003). According to an 11 May 2004 Canadian Press report, becoming pregnant before an arranged marriage is considered a "grave dishonour punishable by death" in some countries including Morocco.

However, citing the revised Penal Code (adopted in July 2003), a recent report entitled State Violence in Morocco. Alternative Report to the United Nations Committee Against Torture stated the following:

[There is] no more discrimination between men/women in sentencing when one person kills his/her spouse upon witnessing that person's infidelity. Before the reform, there were mitigating circumstances granted to the husband who had beaten, injured or killed his wife or her lover (OMCT Apr. 2004).

For a description of honour killings, please see Response to Information Request LBY42988.E of 21 September 2004.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Amnesty Now. n.d. Laura Jamison. "Killing for 'Honor': Legalized Murder." [Accessed 21 Sept. 2004]

The Canadian Press. 11 May 2004. Chelsea J. Carter. "By any Standard, Burned Alive: A Victim of the Law of Men Is a Horrifying Story of Cruelty." (Dialog)

The Daily Star [Beirut]. 9 September 2004. Jessy Chahine. "Laws in Arab World Remain Lenient on Honour Crimes."

The Free Dictionary.com. n.d. "Honour Killing." [Accessed 21 Sept. 2004]

The Gauntlet Feminism Supplement. 15 March 2001. Aida Sadr. "Devastating Abuse or Cultural Norm?" University of Calgary, Undergraduate Students. [Accessed 17 Sept. 2004]

Libre Belgique [Brussels]. 4 April 2004. Veronique Leblnac. "Crimes d'honneur, crimes d'horreur." [Accessed 21 Sept. 2004]

Ms. Magazine. Summer 2004. Jessica Neuwirth. "Unequal: A Global Perspective on Women Under the Law." [Accessed 21 Sept. 2004]
_____. n.d. "Her Story: 1971- ." [Accessed 21 Sept. 2004]

World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), Geneva. April 2004. State Violence in Morocco. Alternative Report to the United Nations Committee Against Torture. Report published in cooperation with the Association démocratique des femmes marocaines and l'Observatoire marocaine des Prisons. [Accessed 20 Sept. 2004]

Additional Sources Consulted

Publications: Africa Confidential, Resource Centre country file.

Websites, including: Amnesty International, The Arab Resource Centre on Violence Against Women, BBC Africa, Centre of Islamic and Middle Eastern Laws (CIMEL), Ecoi.net, Dialog, FIDH, HRW, IRIN, Libya Our Home, Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice, Women Living Under Muslim Laws, World Organisation Against Torture (WOAT).