Three
Moroccan teenagers arrested for posting photos of themselves kissing on
Facebook were released to their parents on Monday ahead of their trial
for breaching public decency, judicial sources said.
The young couple and a male friend who took the
photos had been held in a juvenile detention centre in the northern city
of Nador since Thursday, as their arrest sparked outrage on social
media.
"It
involves a teenage boy and his girlfriend. They were arrested on
Thursday for violating public decency by posting a photo of them
kissing" in the northeastern town of Nador, said Chakib al-Khayari,
president of the Rif Association of Human Rights.
The photograph was taken outside the high school where the two are students.
- See more at: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/news/moroccan-teens-arrested-for-facebook-kiss/story-fni0bzoc-1226733317958#sthash.CtzXODOu.dpuf
The photograph was taken outside the high school where the two are students.
- See more at: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/news/moroccan-teens-arrested-for-facebook-kiss/story-fni0bzoc-1226733317958#sthash.CtzXODOu.dpuf
After the detainees formally asked to be released, the judge on Monday agreed to their request and ordered that they be delivered to their parents, the public prosecutor said.
The teenagers, aged between 14 and 15, were arrested after a Moroccan
NGO filed a lawsuit at the end of September which charged that the
photos “deeply affect Moroccan education and culture, and upset people’s
feelings.”
The teens’ lawyer, Moneim Fettahi, told AFP they were due to stand trial on Friday for public indecency.
The photographs were taken outside the high school in Nador where the three accused are students.
Young people have posted similar photos on social media and called on
Facebook for a “giant kiss-in” on Wednesday in the coastal town of
Mohammedia.
“Let’s mobilise against the arrest of these two teenagers … and fight
against this backward, medieval mentality,” said the organisers of the
event.
A similar group smooch, dubbed “free kiss,” is planned in Rabat on Saturday outside parliament.
Morocco has a reputation for religious tolerance and personal
freedoms, particularly when compared to other Muslim countries, but it
remains a deeply religious society.
Under article 483 of the kingdom’s penal code, anyone found guilty of violating public decency risks up to two years in prison.
"It
involves a teenage boy and his girlfriend. They were arrested on
Thursday for violating public decency by posting a photo of them
kissing" in the northeastern town of Nador, said Chakib al-Khayari,
president of the Rif Association of Human Rights.
The photograph was taken outside the high school where the two are students.
- See more at: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/news/moroccan-teens-arrested-for-facebook-kiss/story-fni0bzoc-1226733317958#sthash.CtzXODOu.dpuf
The photograph was taken outside the high school where the two are students.
- See more at: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/news/moroccan-teens-arrested-for-facebook-kiss/story-fni0bzoc-1226733317958#sthash.CtzXODOu.dpuf
No comments:
Post a Comment