Almost every week in Marrakech you'll hear a story about a child found alone in the street—whispers that a baby was left near a garbage dump. These are realities in Morocco, where abortion is mostly illegal, sexual relations outside of marriage are forbidden by law, and social stigma can press some mothers to abandon their children.
Illegitimate children in Morocco are technically illegal. Many have no papers and no last name and are treated as outcasts; and while it is possible to register and legitimize them through legal avenues, it has sometimes been an ordeal for the unwed mothers, who rightly fear that they may end up in prison for adultery. Between poverty and religious stigma—plus a disproportionately high rate of disabled babies being discarded—there is a host of fears around the thousands of children who are abandoned every year, a number estimated at 5,700 in 2009, and thought to be increasing nationally. Many of these children will never be adopted; many are at risk of human trafficking.
Instead of adoption, in Morocco there is the system of child custody known as kafala, which administers the guardianship of illegitimate children but doesn't give them the right to assume the name of their adoptive family. For parents who wish to adopt, the kafala procedure can take a few months to a year or more; it's also available only to Muslims, which limits foreign adoptions. The culture of adoption among Moroccans still favors girls, who are preferred to boys as they are considered easier to raise—though in some cases they are adopted largely to help with the daily household chores.
[For more on this story by ALI BERRADA, go to https://psmag.com/magazine/children-in-limbo]
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