Several dozen protesters denounced this Wednesday in Rabat a verdict considered lax against three men accused of repeatedly raping an 11-year-old girl, a case that arouses emotion and indignation in Morocco.
“This verdict is incomprehensible, unfair and shocking. We are here to carry the voice of this child. It must stop!”, declared Maria Tahir, who went to protest against the call of the “Spring of Dignity”, a group of feminists associations, before a court in Rabat.
two years in prison
The appeal trial of this high-profile case is due to start on Thursday in the Moroccan capital, but will most likely be postponed at the request of the plaintiff’s lawyer.
The criminal chamber of the Rabat Court of Appeal sentenced, on March 20 in first instance, three defendants prosecuted for “embezzlement of a minor” and “indecent assault with violence against a minor”. One of the defendants was sentenced to two years in prison, the other two to 18 months.
repeated violations
“No to the rape of girls,” chanted some sixty protesters, mostly women, who criticized “the shame of raped childhood.”
According to Moroccan NGOs for the defense of women’s rights, the minor, who at the time of the events was 11 years old and is now 12, “suffered repeated rapes under threats”, which ended in pregnancy.
The case deeply shocked Moroccan public opinion and a petition condemning the sentence had collected more than 31,000 signatures on Wednesday.
Source: BFM TV
