We Are Delighted That Hajar Raissouni Has Been Pardoned

Location: Morocco, Rabat
Date: October 17, 2019

Hajar Raissouni, who was charged with premarital sex and an illegal abortion, and sent to prison, has been pardoned by the country’s king.

The Coalition welcomes the move, but hopes the country will do more to safeguard the rights of women journalists in the country.

We earlier reported that our colleague Hajar Raissouni had been imprisoned for what should have been none of the state’s business. Hajar had reported from the prison that she never underwent an abortion and was instead being targeted for her journalistic work, and coverage of the Hirak movement.

The case became a symbol for the oppression that women in the country face. Protests were held in her favor asking the authorities to revisit their decision. Her fiance was also given a one-year sentence, while the doctor who treated her also ended up in prison with his staff.

She remained stuck till King Mohammad VI pardoned the journalist. While we appreciate the gesture, we feel that it doesn’t really do justice to the situation that women journalists are facing in the country. Hajar is only free because of the pardon and not because it was recognised that the state had no business sticking its nose into her personal life or that she was falsely accused.

Where she has been released because of the extreme backlash the country had to face, we have to think of situations where a journalist may not hold the same kind of attention in the news.

“This royal pardon comes within a framework of royal compassion and clemency, amid concern by his majesty the King to preserve the future of the couple who intended to start a family in line with religious precepts and the law, despite the error they committed which led to the legal proceedings,” the King declared, via a royal communiqué.

Despite the pardon, women are still at risk in the country and will continue to be unless serious steps are taken to remedy the many prevailing issues in Morocco’s legal and social fabric. We urge the authorities to take on a proactive role and bring in policies that will produce lasting change.

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The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.

Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ.

Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

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