This archive report was first published on 1 October 2019.
On October 1, 2019, Moroccan journalist Hajar Raissouni was sentenced to one year in jail for an 'illegal abortion' and sexual relations outside marriage, sparking widespread debate on personal and media freedoms in Morocco.
According to reports, Raissouni was arrested on August 31 as she left a clinic in Rabat, where she was being treated for internal bleeding. In court, she denied having had an abortion, saying she had been treated for internal bleeding, a claim backed up by her gynaecologist.
Rights groups were quick to condemn the verdicts, with Amnesty International describing them as a 'devastating blow for women's rights in Morocco'. Heba Morayef, Amnesty's Middle East and North Africa director, called for Raissouni's conviction to be revoked and for her immediate and unconditional release.
Human Rights Watch also condemned the sentencing, with regional director Ahmed Benchemsi describing it as a 'black day for freedom in Morocco'. The verdicts were 'a blatant injustice, a flagrant violation of human rights, and a frontal attack on individual freedoms', he wrote on Twitter.
Maati Monjib, a Moroccan historian present in court, hit out at the entire premise of the case, calling it a 'case of political repression, repression of independent opinion and vengeance (against) the family'. Raissouni had said she was quizzed by authorities about an uncle who is an outspoken Islamist newspaper columnist.
Reporters Without Borders also weighed in, saying Raissouni's treatment amounted to 'meddling in the private lives of journalists and the use of personal information' with the intent of defamation.
