Rabat – The Royal Referral to the Higher Council of Ulema regarding certain proposals of a religious nature, brought to the High Appreciation of His Majesty King Mohammed VI by the Body in charge of revising the Family Code, is a constitutional measure aimed at completing the process of revising this legislation, said Abderrahim Lamine, professor at the Rabat-Agdal Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences and an expert in family and childhood issues.
In a statement to MAP, Lamine noted that the Royal Office’s statement contains clear Guidelines for the Higher Council of Ulema, the institution exclusively empowered by the Constitution to issue Fatwas, noting that these Guidelines focus on the choice of open and constructive Ijtihad to find innovative and constructive solutions in line with the principles and precepts of Islam and aimed at ensuring the enshrinement of full rights for all components of the family.
The Royal approach, he added, also aims to provide modern legislation capable of preserving
the cohesion of the Moroccan family as a pillar of the national community, so that it can fulfill its social-educational roles.
In this respect, he emphasized the central role of the monarchical institution in framing Ijtihad on the basis of the norm that “one cannot authorize what is prohibited, nor prohibit what is authorized”, noting that this does not prevent a relevant Ijtihad for the explanation of religious prescriptions and for reaching innovative theological solutions through a renewed and realistic reading of religious texts.
Lamine also stressed that the Higher Council of Ulema has the theological and scientific skills needed to issue a modern Fatwa in line with the aims of religion, and in phase with social reality and developments in society and the family unit.
On Friday, His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, Chairman of the Higher Council of Ulema, kindly gave His High Directives to the said Council, to examine certain questions contained in the proposals of the Body in charge of
revising the Family Code, with reference to the principles and precepts of the holy religion of Islam and its tolerant purposes, and to submit a Fatwa on their subject to the Sovereign’s High Appreciation.
Source: Agence Marocaine De Presse