Abortion Rights In Morocco - What Does Islam Say?

RABAT — Her voice is thick with emotion, the words flowing too fast. Aïcha (not her real name) finds it difficult to talk about herself, to tell her story. In 2012, the young woman was told she was pregnant, again. Her unemployed husband asked her to "get rid of it." The couple, who live in the Moroccan capital of Rabat, were already struggling to raise their three children.

She couldn't find a certified doctor who would agree to perform an abortion, and when she finally decided to turn to a black-market abortionist, she gave up on the idea "out of fear." Today, with her little boy on her lap, the mother of four, now even more burdened by everyday life’s difficulties, doesn’t conceal that she wished she'd had a choice.

A feminist umbrella group called The Dignity Spring has launched a new campaign calling for the decriminalization of abortion and the "right of women to self-determination." 

In the media, inside parliamentary groups and associations, the debate is shaking Moroccan society like never before since King Mohammed VI hinted on March 16 that the law should be reformed to stem the tide of dangerous, underground abortions and make safe ones accessible.

Under current Moroccan law, abortion is forbidden, except if there’s a danger to the mother's life or health. Women who abort for other reasons than these risk between six months and two years in prison, and the doctors up to 20 years. 

In 2013, gynecologist Aziz Lahlou was sentenced to 10 years in prison, later reduced to five years on appeal. His secretary, his nurse, his anesthesiologist, and even his cleaning lady were also jailed. Though it is...