Poignant new documentary sheds light on Morocco's child brides

In 2023, underage marriage is still a common practice in Morocco, ruining the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of young girls who are still children, subjected to their own fate and forced to say “yes” so as not to upset their families or, worse, society.

In a poignant documentary entitled “Mazal Tefla” which means “still a child”, director Meryem Ait Aghnia and journalist Camélia Echchihab met four victims of underage marriage.

Some of them were even married several times while they were still minors.

They tell of the ordeal they have lived through, whether with their parents or their husbands, accentuated by poverty and a failing judicial system that still allows the marriage of minors and children.

Currently adults, the four women who participated in the documentary  come from different regions of Morocco, from Larache to Casablanca, from Haouz and Ksar El Kebir. What they have in common is that they were all child brides.

At only 18 years old, Amina has just been divorced. Between an abusive adoptive mother and a violent ex-husband, she is trying to rebuild her future. As for Chaimae, she is proud to have obtained a divorce after having shared 7 years of life with a man who humiliated her daily.

Zohra, for her part, has not had the chance to free herself from her third husband, who regularly beats her under the influence of drugs. Finally, Khadija recounts a daily life marked by responsibilities and an overwhelming precariousness. Her husband was also a minor when they got married.

Through this touching documentary, available on Youtube and whose screening followed by a discussion will take place this Thursday, May 4 at 7:30 pm at uZine Casablanca, Meryem Ait Aghnia and Camélia Echchihab shed light on the nightmare that victims of child marriage live.

Filmed in 2022, “Mazal Tefla” was co-produced by JAWJAB and the association Droit et Justice, with the support of the association Les Citoyens, as part of the project “Ending Child Marriage” in partnership with UN Women.

Between 2007 and 2018, 82% of applications were authorized, while about 19,000 underage marriages were authorized in 2021, compared to 13,335 in 2022, and then 20,738 in 2019.