In a solidarity statement with Hafsa Boutahar, who appeared before the Prosecutor's Office to denounce the sexual crimes she suffered at the hands of her co-worker, the accused Omar Radi, the AMDV denounced "irresponsible statements" that undermine the dignity of Boutahar as well as her reputation and that of all victims of sexual violations, who have chosen to break the silence.
Reiterating its full and unconditional support to Hafsa Boutahar and all victims of sexual assaults, the AMDV called on all human rights advocates to reject all forms of sexual assaults and crimes, protect the victims and guarantee them the means of judicial empowerment in cases of rape and sexual crimes.
It urged, at the same time, all those who enforce the law to guarantee legal and judicial protection for victim Hafsa Boutahar and all victims of sexual violations, under the resolution of the United Nations General Assembly No. 34/169 and all decisions relating thereto.
The Association also called on all human rights associations, governmental and non-governmental organizations both national and international, who believe in the principles of human rights to show objectivity in the cases of the victims of sexual violations and crimes.
These cases do not affect the principle of freedom of expression, as some try to label them to mislead the national public opinion, attract sympathy at the national and international level, and influence justice, it added.
In that regard, the AMDV has condemned all the illegal means and methods, in contradiction with the spirit and logic of human rights, that have been used to confront the victim Hafsa Boutahar by hiding her role in the current criminal case, through attempts to influence the justice and to enshrine the principle of impunity.
Solidarity with Hafsa Boutahar comes "in the context of what victims of sexual violence endure for having broken the taboo on what they have suffered as rape and sexual exploitation.
It also aims to face the wave of allegations and anti women's rights statements "which try to disguise the truth, present the accused of rape as an activist detained on the grounds of the freedom of expression, support untruths and transfer responsibility for sexual crimes to the victims through value judgments tainted with racism," the AMDV added.
Solidarity also comes "in response to the relentless campaign led by some supporters of the rights of the accused who make veiled accusations against the victims, considering them as instruments of political settlements of accounts in total denial of their suffering as a result of what they have endured as sexual exploitation in the workplace," it stated.
The Moroccan Association for the Defense of Victims has recently held in Rabat its Constitutive Assembly under the theme "For a legal and social protection of victims," with the aim of supporting the rights of victims of crimes and defend the rights of children, women and all vulnerable categories.