On Tuesday, July 19, 2022, in Rome, Houriya Didi, a member of the Authenticity and Modernity Group in the House of Representatives, participated in a meeting of the Committee on Women’s Rights of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean. She delivered an important statement in which she highlighted the distinguished status accorded to women by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist him, She called for the enactment of fair legislation and laws to punish perpetrators and rapists, and for the opening of borders between the countries of the Arab Maghreb to facilitate cooperation among them in order to strengthen the role of women in all fields.
In her speech, she highlighted the role Moroccan women have played thanks to the support of His Majesty Mohammed VI, which has enabled them to gain access to decision-making positions and enact laws aimed at improving their status, such as: the “Family Code,” the “Law on Combating Violence Against Women,” and the “Labor Code.” She noted that further efforts are still needed in this area, particularly since UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace, and security, since its adoption in 2000, has faced a series of obstacles to its adoption by most countries, with the outbreak of international and internal armed conflicts, the latest of which was the Russian-Ukrainian war, which has deepened the suffering of women and led to the displacement of female refugees.
In light of the above, Didi emphasized the need to establish more effective mechanisms through the enactment of fair and protective legislation and laws, to punish perpetrators and rapists, to provide redress for victims, and to open borders between countries to facilitate cooperation among them, such as the countries of the Maghreb, in addition to strengthening the role of the media in disseminating facts about the situation of women in conflict zones.
It should be noted that the committee’s agenda included the approval of the minutes of the December 3, 2021, meeting regarding the adoption of draft recommendations on ““on climate change and gender policies” and an exchange of views on “the role of women in conflicts.” The discussion in the first session focused on the topic “Women and Social Conflicts,” the second session on “Women in Armed Conflicts,” and the third session on “Women at the Peace Table.”
Khadija Al-Rahali
