Women Activists From Morocco

"I'm very proud of what I've done. I never thought I would become a grassroots woman, but I've managed to save many young people, families, and even adults in difficulty. That's why I must continue. I have two to three conferences a week, my schedule is very busy, but I don't give up. As long as I'm healthy! It's a mission I have today. My children and my husband help me a lot. If that weren't the case, it would be difficult for me. And I hope that when I no longer have the strength, someone will take up the torch. We need women and men in the field. The only thing I regret is that I don't see my grandchildren much because I travel so often. And yes, I stay in touch with young people, I don't forget them. I contact them when there are difficult times, I help them. I lost a son, but today, I have many children."

"I started my activism in new structures that emerged and really started to grow…when there was the prospect of a new era, the possibility for change."

"There was an amnesty in favour of political prisoners, some detention centres and torture facilities were closed down, and new structures for human rights were created."

"There was this whole human rights movement that emerged, which was the direct result of the struggle of activists who were behind bars and never stopped their struggle"

"It’s a never-ending struggle to preserve these gains, because the ‘enemy’—dictatorship—is always just waiting around the corner, ready at any point to sabotage all your gains. So it’s important to remain vigilant…to protect and preserve the rights that were fought for and achieved."

"I say to myself that I can forgive those who tortured me, those who detained me, those who perpetrated hideous crimes against me. I can even forgive the state. But I want to guarantee that my daughters won’t experience the same fate as me."

"My grandparents and my husband's grandparents lived in M'diq. Imad loved this place, he loved the sea, he was a boy who loved life. I buried him in M'diq because it was his choice. Every time I come, I tell him: "I think I did the right thing burying you here, it's hard for me because I'm far from you." But his grave faces the sea and he's surrounded by his family. When I miss talking to him, I buy a plane ticket and go to Morocco. When I go to see him, I stay an hour, two hours, I tell him everything, I clean the grave, I tell him I'll come back."

"It's so hard... When the end of February comes, it's the hardest for me. No one can fill that void. Despite all the good I do, the projects and messages of peace I convey, there's this pain inside, the pain of a mother that will never go away. But my children fill me with happiness. My son had a baby last month, it warmed my heart, I'm very happy."

"Between 500 and 600 young people will be running. It will be beautiful. Imad loved sports; he played football, a little rugby when he was younger, swimming, and a little athletics at the beginning. He loved sports and culture; he always had a sports bag or a book in his hand. This tribute means a lot to this great boy, this great man, whom I will never forget."

"That's why I quickly got involved: so that no other mother would suffer like me."

"My dream is to save this youth and reach out to them. The world is beautiful, we must make it even more beautiful!"

"Since Covid, many children have dropped out of school in Morocco. So we're going to try to recruit these 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds, and then there will be others of all ages. We'll work with local public schools. The center will be open Monday to Saturday, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., to guide young people who have dropped out of school, support them, and work with their parents."

"Today, when we evaluate the fish population, we still talk in tons, not in number of individuals . This is something we don't do with any other animal! We talk about fish in terms of stocks. This is serious! This is what fuels this view that we must change. The ocean is not a warehouse with goods that we must manage! It is a living environment that we must respect, for ethical reasons but also more selfishly for our own survival."

"When a whale gets harpooned, it's not a big deal to anyone. But we figure if humans risk their lives for it, then it can become a big deal. So our job is to shine a spotlight on what's happening at sea . We're whistleblowers. If the ocean dies, we die . We don't have a choice about whether or not to act, so we have to do it."

"When it comes to ecology, we are all totally overwhelmed by the multiplication of problems and the scale of the issues . If we want to act, we are forced to choose a battle. The sea represents 70% of the earth's surface and, for the moment, Sea Shepherd is the only association with ships to take concrete action on the ground . So I chose this environment because it is a major issue and there is enormous room for improvement. For me, it was a strategic choice, not an ideological one."

"Our overall goal is to raise awareness about what humans are doing to the ocean . The next goal, which stems from the first, is to change regulations that are completely lax and permissive. We may have to fight against horrific but technically legal practices."

"After my release in 1982, I only really started to speak and become active again in 1991. I became a member of the coordinating council for all the then-existing women’s groups (al-Majlis al-Watani lil-Tansiq). We combined forces to change the mudawana (the code of laws governing family and women’s status), laws that obviously handicap women. If we could change the law, we felt we could change anything. I began with the Union d’Action Feminine (UAF) campaign to collect a million signatures. I knew UAF president Latifa Jbabdi from the “March 23” organization, then again we were together in Derb Moulay Cherif for seven months, followed by the prisons of Ghbila and Meknes for three years from 1977-80. I was among those women who put together documents and texts presented to King Hassan II in 1992. Some changes were effected in 1993. Since that collaborative experience, I learned that women have to struggle to make changes but equally we have to alleviate, or ease women’s social and cultural burdens."

"As a former political prisoner, I feel this enormous psychological relief and unburdening since the death of King Hassan II and note the changes in me and in Morocco. It is only during this “new era” (‘ahd jadid) that I became really active. Before I just wrote, now I feel useful. For example, my husband and I are among the founding members of the Moroccan Observatory of Prisons (OMP) officially organized November 13, 1999. I experienced prison, I wanted to help other prisoners, and I found a way to do so through the NGO movement. We write reports, visit prisons, and last Ramadan, we organized festivities first in the women’s and then in the men’s sections of Oukacha Penitentiary. We are working to establish programs to help prisoners reintegrate into society by paying attention to their individual familial and social contexts, and we work to change laws concerning current prison sentencing practices. The prison authorities have been receptive."

"The man and the woman enjoy, in equality, the rights and freedoms of civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental character, enounced in this Title and in the other provisions of the Constitution, as well as in the international conventions and pacts duly ratified by Morocco and this, with respect for the provisions of the Constitution, of the constants of the Kingdom and of its laws. The State works for the realization of parity between men and women. An Authority for parity and the struggle against all forms of discrimination is created, to this effect."

"Moroccan women’s battle for their rights has been an uphill one. Yet, they fought it with valor, steadfastness and self-abnegation."

"Lack of public housing, poverty, illiteracy, street violence, rape, lack of opportunities and entrenched corruption are all aspects of the Morocco that Oum Hamza is fighting against."

"This type of grievance cannot be resolved by legislation only or by paying lip service to women’s rights in the most solemn of ways. The resolution of these issues requires realpolitik and practical results."

"Massive spread of fake news, disinformation, hate speech and digital violence are the most notable issues."

"Because life is the inherent and absolute right on which other rights are based."

"Those who accuse me and criticize me regarding my marriage with Choubani are hypocrites."

"Love is not Haram."

"Ms. Bouayach quoted Nelson Mandela’s belief that "education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world. She underlined that this idea extends beyond achieving sustainable development, fighting climate change, promoting equality and human rights or building a better future. It plays a crucial role in maintaining peace and preventing atrocities and violations."

"issues arise with unprecedented and dangerous consequences and practices"

"Je pense qu’une constitution ne doit pas rester figée, car la société d’aujourd’hui n’est pas celle de demain et les jeunes de demain n’auront pas les mêmes aspirations que ceux d’aujourd’hui."