She was brought before a court for commenting in a satirical style, in Arabic, on her personal Facebook page, verses from the Koran and the sermon of the prophet Muhammad.
A Moroccan woman was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday for “undermining the Muslim religion” for a post she made on Facebook that was “insulting” to Islam, her brother told AFP today.
Fatima Karim, 39, was questioned by police on July 15 and has been in custody since then, her brother said. She was brought before a court for commenting in a satirical style, in Arabic, on her personal Facebook page, verses from the Koran and the sermon of the prophet Muhammad.
Karim, who plans to appeal, invoked her right to freedom of expression guaranteed by Morocco’s constitution, her brother told AFP. According to him, his sister publicly apologized to “anyone who felt offended” by her posts, stressing that she never intended to undermine Islam.
The court of first instance in Oued Zem, 150 kilometers from Casablanca, found her guilty and sentenced her to two years in prison. “The verdict is very harsh. It takes us back many years,” commented her brother.
Article 267-5 of Morocco’s penal code, under which Fatima Karim was convicted, provides for a prison sentence of six months to two years for anyone who “undermines the Muslim religion.” The sentence may increase to five years in prison if the offense is committed in public, “including by electronic means.” The same article also provides for severe punishment for “attacking the monarchical regime” and “incitement to undermine the territorial integrity” of the kingdom.
Organizations for the defense of human rights have denounced the specific article, pointing out that the wording “does not specifically define” what could be characterized as “undermining”.
In June 2021, an Italian-Moroccan woman was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison by a Moroccan court for “undermining the Muslim religion” for posting satirical phrases imitating verses from the Koran on Facebook. However, the girl was released shortly after, after – on appeal – her sentence was changed to a two-month suspended prison term, following a protest campaign by human rights organisations.
RES-EMP
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