The court of first instance of Imintanout, in the province of Chichaoua, rendered a verdict which raises questions.
Indeed, an individual accused of raping a minor was sentenced to eight months in prison and a fine of five hundred dirhams. This very lenient verdict highlights the shortcomings of the Moroccan judicial system, criticized for its leniency towards rapists.
According to sources informed of MoroccoLatestNews, the individual implicated in this case was arrested on Friday May 19 and was immediately brought before the General Prosecutor’s Office.
According to the same sources, the 12-year-old victim suffered repeated sexual assaults before resisting the 50-year-old’s last attack and shouting loudly for help.
Recently, a similar case in Tiflet has also sparked heated controversy among Moroccans, who have expressed deep outrage at what they see as excessive leniency on the part of the court. The sentence initially pronounced at first instance, i.e. two years in prison, was strongly criticized for its apparent inadequacy with the seriousness of the acts committed.
The Tiflet case has amplified the debate on Morocco’s justice system when it comes to sexual violence, calling into question the effectiveness of sanctions and the protection of victims.
In this sense, civil society stresses the urgency of reforms to guarantee harsher penalties and truly dissuasive justice for sexual aggressors.