The Criminal Chamber of the Rabat Court of Appeal decided, today, Thursday, to postpone the appeal of the ruling in the “Tiflet Child” case, in order to prepare the defendants’ defense and summon the witness, while ensuring that the notification is made, until April 13th.
The first session was attended by 30 lawyers to defend the child, Sana, who attended with her father and grandmother.
The effects of psychological wounds were evident on the face of the victim, whose father, Muhammad Siraj, confirmed that she is still undergoing treatment as a result of what she was subjected to at the hands of the accused. He added in a statement to Al-Alam: “I am confident of the integrity of our judiciary and that we will be redressed.” He also did not miss the opportunity to direct Thanks to the press body with its various components: “I would like to extend a special greeting to all workers in the media sector due to their careful follow-up of this file. Without them, my daughter’s case would not have turned into a public opinion case.”
For his part, Abdel Fattah Zahrach, a lawyer in the Rabat Authority and a member of the executive office of the Moroccan Association for Victims’ Rights, said: “Today, the criminal judge in the Criminal Chamber called on all the parties to the case who appeared before him, and postponed the session to next Thursday in order to prepare the defense of the accused and to summon the witness.” “.
He added, in a statement to Al-Alam, that we highly value the efforts made by the judicial system in our country, and we hope that the appeal ruling will restore the right to the victim child.
Yesterday, Wednesday, women’s and human rights organizations and coalitions organized a protest stand in front of the Rabat Court of Appeal, to denounce the lenient sentence issued against the rapists of the child, Sana Bteifelt.
The participants in the vigil raised banners and slogans denouncing the ruling, and criticizing the lack of justice for women in light of the laws in force, and in light of the impunity of rapists and abusers.
The protesters considered that childhood is in danger under such provisions, stressing the need to amend laws to comply with international covenants, while moving in the direction of tightening rather than mitigation.
The Spring of Dignity Coalition sent an open letter to both the Minister of Justice and the delegated president of the Supreme Council of the Judicial Authority, in which he warned of the overwhelming resentment and shock caused by the ruling.
The coalition called for the development and implementation of a criminal policy that guarantees legal and judicial protection for women and girls from violence and sexual assault, its effective implementation, and the proper and fair application of the law.
The Criminal Court of Appeal in Rabat had set today, Thursday, April 6, as the date for the first hearings of the defendants in the case of the rape of the child, Sana, by three defendants, who gave birth to a baby that genetic expertise confirmed belonged to one of the defendants, at a rate of 99.99%.
The First Instance Criminal Chamber had previously sentenced two defendants to two years in prison within the limits of eighteen months, while it sentenced the third defendant to two years in prison, with the defendants paying compensation for the benefit of the victim whose father is acting on her behalf because she is a minor.
This lenient sentence issued against the rapists of a child in Tiflet sparked widespread controversy, as the Moroccan Girls Forum confirmed that the judiciary with this ruling had contributed to encouraging other monsters to commit such heinous crimes.
The Forum said, “It received with great sorrow and deep indignation the ruling issued by the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Appeal in Rabat, through which three human monsters who assaulted a girl under the age of 11 were sentenced to two years in prison.”
For his part, the Minister of Justice, Abd al-Latif Wehbe, revealed that he was shocked by the content of the ruling issued against the defendants in a file of repeated rape that resulted in the pregnancy of a girl not exceeding 12 years old, in the Ghazawneh region, on the outskirts of the city of Tiflet, indicating that he was determined to tighten the maximum penalties for child rape crimes. .
Wehbe said in a press statement to the media, last Saturday, that the child’s file is still before the courts in a higher degree of litigation, expressing his satisfaction with the step of the Public Prosecution’s appeal to the ruling in order to protect the rights of the victim and the proper application of the law.