The present paper seeks to shed light on the main factors lying behind the non-implementation of Article 20 of the New Moroccan Family Law reformed in 2004 which is concerned with legal minimum age of marriage for bot...The present paper seeks to shed light on the main factors lying behind the non-implementation of Article 20 of the New Moroccan Family Law reformed in 2004 which is concerned with legal minimum age of marriage for both sexes, 18 years old for both. This study aims at investigating why the number of marriages of young girls continue to increase despite the establishment of the Law. The author takes the region of Fez as a case in point to explore this social behavior in Moroccan society. A qualitative approach has been adopted by interviewing 10 persons including Family Affairs Judges, lawyers and University Professors of Islamic studies at the University of Fez. Added to this, the technique of observation has equally been utilized to have everyday life concrete experiences of young girls ＂marriages＂. It has been argued that a unilateral approach to this social phenomenon cannot succeed to understand the complex nature of this bad social habit that is still predominant among rural areas and marginalized urban districts. A rather global approach taking into account the economic, socio-cultural, and legal dimension of the issue under investigation proves to be much more adequate to explore the intricate nature of this problems in which a number of diverse variables interact. The paper ends up with a conclusion and a number of recommendations on how to reduce this social act.展开更多
文摘The present paper seeks to shed light on the main factors lying behind the non-implementation of Article 20 of the New Moroccan Family Law reformed in 2004 which is concerned with legal minimum age of marriage for both sexes, 18 years old for both. This study aims at investigating why the number of marriages of young girls continue to increase despite the establishment of the Law. The author takes the region of Fez as a case in point to explore this social behavior in Moroccan society. A qualitative approach has been adopted by interviewing 10 persons including Family Affairs Judges, lawyers and University Professors of Islamic studies at the University of Fez. Added to this, the technique of observation has equally been utilized to have everyday life concrete experiences of young girls ＂marriages＂. It has been argued that a unilateral approach to this social phenomenon cannot succeed to understand the complex nature of this bad social habit that is still predominant among rural areas and marginalized urban districts. A rather global approach taking into account the economic, socio-cultural, and legal dimension of the issue under investigation proves to be much more adequate to explore the intricate nature of this problems in which a number of diverse variables interact. The paper ends up with a conclusion and a number of recommendations on how to reduce this social act.
