Table Of ContentModernizing Patriarchy
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Modernizing Patriarchy
The Politics of Women’s
Rights in Morocco
Katja Žvan Elliott
University of Texas Press Austin
Copyright © 2015 by the University of Texas Press
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Printed in the United States of America
First edition, 2015
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All photographs courtesy of the author.
♾ The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of
ANSI/NISO Z39.48- 1992 (R1997) (Permanence of Paper).
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Žvan Elliot, Katja, 1978-
Modernizing patriarchy : the politics of women’s rights in Morocco /
Katja Žvan Elliott. — First edition.
pages cm
ISBN 978- 1- 4773-0 244-6 (cloth)
ISBN 978- 1- 4773-0 245-3 (library e- book)
ISBN 978- 1- 4773-0 246-0 (non- library e- book)
1. Women’s rights—Morocco. 2. Feminism—Morocco. 3. Women—
Morocco—Social conditions—21st century. I. Title.
HQ1236.5.M8Z83 2015
305.4096409′05—dc23
2014031033
doi:10.7560/302446
To my babi, mom, and sister. For they are amazing women.
[H]ow can society achieve progress, while women, who represent half the
nation, see their rights violated and suffer as a result of injustice, violence and
marginalization, notwithstanding the dignity and justice granted them by
our glorious religion?
—Ministry of CoMMuniCation, 2003
Since acceding to the throne of his noble ancestors, His Majesty King
Muhammad VI, our Chief Commander of the Faithful, may God protect
him, has made the promotion of human rights a priority which lies at the
very heart of the modernist democratic social project of which His Majesty is
a leader. Doing justice to women, protecting children’s rights and preserving
men’s dignity are a fundamental part of this project, which adheres to Islam’s
tolerant ends and objectives, notably justice, equality, solidarity, ijtihad
[juridical reasoning] and receptiveness to the spirit of our modern era and the
requirements of progress and development.
—PrEaMblE to thE 2004 faMily CodE
His Majesty King Muhammad VI . . . has insisted . . . on making the
Moroccan family—based upon shared responsibility, affection, equality, equity,
amicable social relations and proper upbringing of children—a substantial
major component of the democratization process, given that the family
constitutes the essential nucleus of society.
—PrEaMblE to thE 2004 faMily CodE
These provisions should not be regarded as flawless, nor should they be perceived
from a fanatic angle. Instead, you should address them with realism and clear-
sightedness, keeping in mind that this is an ijtihad effort which is suitable
for Morocco at this point in time, in its endeavors to achieve the development
objective it is pursuing a wise, gradual, and determined manner.
—Ministry of CoMMuniCation, 2003
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Note on Transliteration xiii
Abbreviations xv
Introduction 1
1. Ethnographic Reflections 21
2. Politicization of Gender 35
3. The State, the Public, and Women’s Rights 67
4. Twenty- First- Century Marriage: Gender Equality
or Complementarity? 97
5. Rural, Educated, and Single 141
Conclusion 175
Appendix 187
Notes 191
Glossary 209
Bibliography 211
Index 231
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Acknowledgments
Writing acknowledgments is like saying good-b ye to friends you are
leaving behind. It is necessarily emotional and filled with fond, but also
sad, memories. My father passed away only a few months before I could
phone him to let him know that this manuscript, at the time still in the
form of a PhD dissertation, is written. I wish we had more time to catch
up on what was once almost lost. I wish we had more time to talk, listen
to each other, and reconnect. Yearning not death makes you cry. The dead
find their rest in the earth (Anti- Atlas tazrrart, quoted in Hoffman 2008).
I hope you have found it. My grandmother and my mother are the two
women in my life who taught me what it means to be a woman. Despite
their enormous hardships in life, they always reemerged more beautiful
and stronger than ever. They showed me how to survive, live, and love.
It is to you, my dear babi and mami, that I dedicate this book. My sis-
ter is my role model. Her incredible achievements, dedication to her re-
search, and integrity are sometimes frightening, but ever since we were
little she has never once doubted my abilities and has always encouraged
me to work hard(er). She also devoted much of her free time to com-
ment on my drafts, for which I am immensely grateful. It is to you, my
dear Matejka, that I also dedicate this book. I feel privileged to have the
Elliotts in my life and that they have accepted me as their daughter. I am
eternally grateful for their love and support, which has been more than
generous. You, my dear Derek, to you I owe my sanity and serenity. With-
out your love, humor, and gentle reminders that there are things in life
other than my work, without your carefully organized trips away from
my desk, I would have had a much harder and much less enjoyable time
writing this book. Also, watching you transform into a loving and tender
father in a matter of seconds has been truly inspiring. And finally, when
