Abstract
The Moroccan Constitution of 2011, as did its predecessors, enshrines “Islam as the religion of the State” (Art. 3). Its preamble similarly states that Morocco is a “sovereign Muslim state” (“Etat musulman souverain”) and acknowledges the preeminence of Islam as a reference point for the nation as well as Morocco’s role as a part of the Muslim “umma”. Article 41 of the Constitution recognizes the King as the “Commander of the Faithful” with the responsibility for ensuring respect for Islam, notably through the issuance of Dahirs. Nevertheless, the term “sharia” is absent from the Constitution. The closest that one gets to the concept is in family law, where the statute allows judges under limited circumstances to refer to Islam when making decisions. It is at this point that some judges and others propose to introduce “sharia” (not stated in the statute) into Moroccan jurisprudence. In order to understand the extensive role of Islam in the Moroccan polity, it is important to grasp some underlying norms. Among the most interrelated and overlapping norms are first, the longstanding association between the Moroccan state, Islam, and the King – constitutionalized as the Commander of the Faithful. The first Muslim ruler of the incipient state, Idris I (c.745–791) was a direct descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, as are the current King and Crown Prince. The status of the ruler being a descendent of the Prophet (and thus a “Cherif”) is widely recognized in Morocco as combining religious and political legitimacy of the ruler. Second, and importantly, Moroccan society and popular cultural attitudes toward Islam constrain both society itself as well as the political class. Finally, much of Moroccan politics related to religion was influenced significantly during its occupation by France between 1912 and 1956, when many longstanding and independent religious institutions were placed under the control of the state, where they remain today.
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Notes
- 1.
In the Islamic tradition, the term sharia simply refers to the path towards God. It remains generally demonized in the western world while being rather misunderstood in the Arab-Islamic world. As a concept, sharia is seen as a marker that punctuates the socio-political life of people. People abiding by the principles of sharia are called “mutashari’oun.” Sharia can be part of a political project or program; it can be embodied by a woman wearing the hijab or a man growing a beard; or by the separation between men and women in public gatherings. Others may have a less literalist and more spiritual relationship with the notion of sharia. In other cases, sharia may appear in, and disappear from, school programs based on the political conjuncture of the moment (El Ayadi, 2002, 2014). Following the Marrakech Declaration in 2016, religion classes in schools saw their reading books renamed, hence moving from Islamic Education to Religious Education.
- 2.
The notion of Cherif is attributed to anyone descending directly from the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad, through his daughter Fatima. Being a Cherif has historically been a legitimizing asset in the Moroccan society.
- 3.
Similarly, French Algeria (1830–1962, including the war period [1954–1962]) remained Muslim even though colonial France had been promoting laicity since 1789. The promotion of laicity ultimately culminated in the 1905 law on the Separation of the Churches and the State.
- 4.
The French control and use of Moroccan institutions, including the state and religion, has led to the emergence of a nationalist and anticolonial force that found its roots in a religious ideology that became closely tied to the struggle for independence.
- 5.
Article 2 of 2014 Egyptian constitution: “The principles of the Islamic Sharia are the main source of legislation.” Article 2 of the 1992 Kuwait constitution: “Islam is the religion of the state, and the Islamic law will be the main source of legislation.” Article 3 of the 2012 Syrian constitution: “Islamic law is the main source of legislation.” Article 2 of the 2005 Iraqi constitution: “Islam is the official religion of the state and a fundamental source of legislation.”
- 6.
The French version of the Constitution uses the French word “cultes”, which we translate here as “worship.”
- 7.
Even the King of Jordan, who is also a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, does not hold this title.
- 8.
and certainty.
- 9.
Tahtawi, an Azharite, was the chaplain of a group of students Mohammed Ali was sending to Paris in 1826. He read works by Condillac, Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu and Bézout among others during his stay in France and was influenced by them. In his work The Extraction of Gold or an Overview of Paris, he emphasized his definition of freedom in his system of thought: “What they call freedom and what they desire is exactly what we call amongst us justice and equity because governing freely means seeking equality in laws and rulings, so that whomever governs does not commit any injustice towards anyone. On the contrary, laws are what is taken into account and what rules.”
- 10.
Respect for life, the human body, human dignity, tolerance, rejection of constraint in religion (“no constraint in religion”) were retained in the Sharī’a from the seventh century, observes Joseph Maïla. Islam was innovative, not in putting forward the principles on which are founded the rights and principles which are in reality the first truths of Revelation, but in their formulation in so many legal imperatives (Maila, 1991).
- 11.
Political scientist Mohamed Darif stated that “the constitution refers to Islam as a cult rather than a source of legislation. The legislator perceives religion in its laic [or secular] dimension, that is as a cult rather than a set of rules governing political power. The Constitution puts religion at the service of the state since Islam is the official state religion. But this provision does not eliminate the option of laicity as the latter’s foundations give an absolute value to the State to which all other elements must be subjected.”
- 12.
In Sunni Islam, the title ‘commander of the faithful’ was historically claimed by/given to caliphs of Islam – while it still applies exclusively to Imam Ali in the Shia tradition.
- 13.
MUR remains PJD’s ideological branch.
- 14.
Towards the end of his reign, King Hassan II had projected to include his longtime political rivals, especially leftist political parties, in the executive. Following a constitutional reform in 1996, notably granting more powers to the parliament, opposition groups were encouraged to partake in the 1997 elections. With the victory of the – leftist – Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP) party, the King had welcomed the creation of a new government on the basis of national union, ultimately culminating in the Government of Alternance. This had opened a new page in the history of modern Moroccan politics, as it was unprecedented for a party that had stayed in the opposition for decades to head the Moroccan government. Furthermore, that government has also ensured a smooth transition between the late King and the new Monarch, therefore strongly contributing to preserving the stability of the State.
- 15.
Article 220 of the Penal Code starts by “anyone who, by violence or threats compels or prevents anyone from worshiping or attending worship services, is punishable by a six-month to three-year imprisonment and a fine from MAD 100–500.”
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Idrissi, A., Filali Ansary, H. (2023). Equivocal Attitudes to Religion in Moroccan Law and Society. In: Possamai, A., Richardson, J.T., Turner, B.S. (eds) The Sociology of Shari’a. Boundaries of Religious Freedom: Regulating Religion in Diverse Societies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-27188-5_7
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