Two men charged with “violating public modesty” have been convicted and sentenced to four months in jail and a fine of up to around $135. The two men were arrested on June 3 while taking a photograph in front of landmark in the Moroccan capital, Rabat. A day earlier, two activists with the Paris-based feminist organization Femen took a photograph at the same spot while kissing topless with the slogan “In gay we trust” written on their bodies.

A representative of Human Rights Watch who attended their trial reported that the men said they had never been given a chance to read the statements police attributed to them in which they were said to have disclosed being gay.

Their arrest came amidst heightened sensitivity around homosexuality in the country sparked in large part by foreign activists coming to the country to challenge its law against homosexuality, known as Article 489. A Moroccan newspaper reported that 25 people had been arrested for homosexuality since February. Read More