Morocco Imprisons 6 For Homosexuality
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: January 16, 2008 - 1:00 am ET
(Rabat) An appeals court has upheld the convictions of six men who
prosecutors had claimed took part in a gay wedding.
After a video of what authorities claimed was a man in a dress dancing at the
wedding appeared on the internet people in the northern town of Ksar el Kebir
identified the six for police.
When the video and arrests became public in the Moroccan media Moslem
faithful demonstrated in the streets demanding harsh sentences.
Homosexuality in Morocco is punishable with prison terms ranging up to three
years.
All six pleaded not guilty at their trial. Western human rights groups who
monitored the proceeding said they were convicted on flimsy evidence. It also
was not determined if any of the men were gay or transgendered.
The man said to have been the organizer was convicted of homosexuality and
serving liquor illegally. He was sentenced to 10 months. The others received
six month sentences.
The appeals court examined the evidence and upheld the convictions but
reduced the sentences for five of the six.
The alleged organizer's sentence was held but sentences for the five
purported partiers were reduced to four months but could be released earlier.
Amnesty International called the convictions a travesty and called for the
immediate release of all six. The group also said it was concerned about the
personal safety of the men after they are freed.
"The public controversy sparked by this case in Morocco begs for an urgent
review of the country's discriminatory laws which criminalize homosexuality,"
said Philip Luther, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa
program at Amnesty International.
"We urge the Moroccan government to drop the charges that contravene
Morocco's obligations under international human rights law."
©365Gay.com 2008
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