Al Hoceima, Morocco: Jail time reduced
A court in Al Hoceima in Morocco reduced the prison sentence for two people arrested for “homosexuality” who had been imprisoned in the first instance to three years in prison, according to a report in the French-language HuffPost Moroc.
An municipal councillor and a student from the Imzouren region (18 km south of Al Hoceima), condemned in the first instance to three years in prison, had their sentences reduced to one year and six months in prison, respectively, reported the daily Akhbar Al-Yaoum on Tuesday, December 29. They were accused of “homosexuality”, “indecent acts” and “attempted corruption.”
The police had arrested the two accused on December 13th in an official municipal car while the accused were “in the process of engaging in sexual activities,” according to the indictment cited by the Rif Association for Human Rights (ARDH).
The Secretary General of the ARDH, Chakib Alkhayari, said that the sentence “even reduced remains severe,” saying that the “International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights” considers the criminalization of homosexuality a “form of discrimination.”
Article 489 of the Moroccan condemns sexual acts between persons of the same sex with a sentence of up to three years imprisonment.
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