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As a survivor of sexual assault, I condemn rape culture and victim blaming. As a Moroccan journalist, I’ve also experienced and witnessed the lengths the Moroccan state will go to constrain press freedom. In light of @OmarRADI’s arrest, here’s some context 1/?
Moroccan pop singer @saadlamjarred1 was arrested over rape allegations in Oct 2016. Those of us who sought to amplify the survivor’s version were in the minority. King Mohammed VI’s decision to support his legal fees made it even more difficult for us https://www.lefigaro.fr/musique/2016/11/02/03006-20161102ARTFIG00115-le-roi-du-maroc-vole-au-secours-de-saad-lamjarred-soupconne-de-viol-aggrave.php
What message was King Mohammed VI sending to survivors of sexual assault and their supporters by covering the legal fees of a wealthy pop singer accused of rape who was in no need of financial assistance? It wasn’t assuring to say the least.
Just a few months after the #MeToo 
movement picked up in the US, Moroccan authorities arrested and charged editor and journalist Taoufik Bouachrine over multiple rape allegations in Feb 2018 https://cpj.org/data/people/taoufik-bouachrine/
movement picked up in the US, Moroccan authorities arrested and charged editor and journalist Taoufik Bouachrine over multiple rape allegations in Feb 2018 https://cpj.org/data/people/taoufik-bouachrine/
A number of us women journalists and activists sat tight to see how the process would unfold. The unfortunate reality is that many of us have experienced/heard of Moroccan male journos/activists violating the boundaries of consent.
While Bouachrine sat behind bars over rape allegations, Salim Cheikh, the head of public channel 2M, walked free despite rape allegations from a woman who provided numerous pieces of evidence https://www.bladi.net/agression-sexuelle-salim-cheikh-plainte,47237.html
The Moroccan state had already targeted Bouachrine with charges and prison sentences well before his arrest in 2018 https://cpj.org/data/people/taoufik-bouachrine/
As Bouachrine’s case unfolded, several women came forward to deny that he assaulted them, alleging that police either coerced them or falsified their statements. At least one of those women was sentenced to 6 months in prison for defaming the police https://www.h24info.ma/maroc/proces-bouachrine-afaf-bernani-persiste-et-signe/
The much-needed fervor of the #MeToo movement inspired the beginnings of @masaktach in the summer of 2019 https://insidearabia.com/masaktach-a-movement-against-sexual-harassment-in-morocco/
movement inspired the beginnings of @masaktach in the summer of 2019 https://insidearabia.com/masaktach-a-movement-against-sexual-harassment-in-morocco/
At the end of summer that same year, Moroccan authorities arrested and subsequently charged journalist Hajar Raissouni with having an abortion and premarital sex. She was sentenced to 2 years in prison. She worked in the same publication as Bouachrine https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/30/world/africa/morocco-abortion-sex-hajar-raissouni.html
Swift uproar, both national and international, played a major role in King Mohammed VI granting Hajar a royal pardon about a month later https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-50077353
Not even a full year after Hajar was pardoned, her uncle and also journalist with the same publication as her and Bouachrine, Soulaiman Raissouni, was arrested over sexual assault allegations https://middle-east-online.com/en/moroccan-journalist-arrested-‘sexual-assault’
Before @OmarRADI was even arrested this week, back in June, websites close to the state threw around rape allegations from as far back as 2009–on top of the espionage allegations.
I genuinely hope that every survivor of sexual assault finds peace and justice. From my own experiences and given this context, I know that the Moroccan state is not capable of providing either.
The Moroccan state’s selective weaponization of sexual assault charges is a dangerous game that risks triviliazing sexual violence. The real and painful experiences of survivors shouldn’t be a page out of the authoritarian manual to silence dissent.
If you’re a femme who’s ever roamed the streets of Morocco, then you’ve experienced a glimpse into the sexual violence that many ordinary Moroccan women face. But the Moroccan state will have you believe that the only perpetrators of sexual violence are independent journalists.
