conference program & speaker bios

16 Pages·2013·1.45 MB·English

CONFERENCE PROGRAM
& SPEAKER BIOS
Welcome

Dear participant,

KVINFO is pleased to welcome you to this conference on the occasion of
the 10 years of the reformed Moroccan family code. The conference is part
of the Danish-Moroccan bilateral project ”Strengthening Women’s Rights
and Access to Justice in the Moroccan Legal System” focusing on the
implementation of the family code.
Launched in 2007, this project is implemented by KVINFO in partnership
with the Moroccan Ministry of Justice and financed by the Danish Arab
Partnership Program under Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.
Through this event KVINFO hopes to be able to contribute to a sharing of
experiences so far and new ideas with regard to the implementation of the
Moudawana. And to collect inspiration and ideas for our further work in this
area in cooperation with Moroccan partners.

Sincerely,

Elisabeth Møller Jensen
Director
KVINFO
KVINFO - A brief overview
KVINFO is the Danish Centre for Information on Gender, Equality and Diversity. The key role of KVINFO is
to initiate research and disseminate information and findings, and to contribute to the development of an
equal society. Through its work, KVINFO ensures the documentation and communication of knowledge
about gender, equality and ethnicity – both in Denmark and around the world.
In Denmark, KVINFO runs a public research library on gender, and provides multiple online resources,
including web magazines, databases and various sources documenting the history and biographies of
women in Danish society. KVINFO provides advice on equality initiatives for use in the political and public
arenas, and arranges public debate meetings and other events.

KVINFO and the Middle East & North Africa
KVINFO’s activities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region were begun in 2006 in Morocco.
Today, programme activities are carried out in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia
and Yemen by more than 70 partners in Denmark and the MENA region. The current programme is funded
by the Danish Arab Partnership Programme (DAPP) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. The
overall aims of KVINFO’s programme in the MENA region are:
 Addressing and reducing barriers to women’s political, economic and social participation in the
MENA region.
 Improving the dialogue and strengthening partnerships between Denmark and the MENA-region

KVINFO works in sectors where implementation of equal opportunities for all genders still poses a challenge,
both in Denmark and in the MENA region. KVINFO's activities therefore focus on:
 Women’s Political Empowerment
 Women’s Economic Empowerment
 Access to Justice
 Gender Research and Documentation
 Funding smaller projects on gender and women’s rights through our Fund for Dialogue and
Cooperation for Gender and Women's Right
Family Code + 10 - Conference Program

Thursday, November 21
Moderator: Ms. Naima Chikhaoui

9.00 - 9.30:
Opening Ceremony
 Ministry of Justice, Morocco
 HE Mr. Michael Lund Jeppesen, Denmark’s ambassador to Morocco
 Ms. Elisabeth Møller Jensen, Director of KVINFO

9.30 - 10.45:
Keynote speech by Ms Leila Hanafi
Presentation of findings of her study on the family code "The Implementation of Morocco’s 2004
Family Code Moudawana: Stock-Taking & Recommendations”
Stakeholders experience sharing:
 Ms. Fatima Zohra Boukaissi
 Ms. Nezha El Ouafi
 Ms. Malika Touma
 Ms. Fatima Daaif
 Mr. Mohamed Al Hachimi

10.45 - 11.15: Coffee Break & Networking

11.15 - 13.00:
Q & A Session

13.00 - 14.30:
Lunch and Networking

14.30 - 16.00:
Breakout Session:
What is the role of the civil society in the implementation of the Family Code?
Moderators:
 Ms. Jamila Garmouma
 Ms. Zakia Mrini
 Ms. Soumia Boutkhil
 Mr. Joshua A. Sabih
 Mr. Jamal Chahdi

16.00 - 16.30: Coffee Break & Networking / End of Day 1
Friday, November 22
Moderator: Ms. Naima Chikhaoui

9.00 - 9.15:
Opening Ceremony
 Mr. Abdelmajid Rhomija, Director of the Institut Superieur de la Magistrature, Morocco

9.15 - 9.45:
Presentation of Guide to Mediation in Family Courts:
 Ms. Nadia Mzaoui
 Ms. Leise Døllner
 Mr. Omar Lamine
 Mr. Hamid Fadli
 Mr. Joshua A Sabih

9.45 - 11.00:
Q & A Session

11.00 - 11.30: Coffee Break & Networking

11.30 - 14.00:
Panel Debate:
Moroccan Family Law: A New Interpretation of Islamic Law in Contemporary World?
 Ms. Zhour El Horr
 Mr. Joshua A Sabih
 Third panelist to be confirmed

14.00 - 15.30: Lunch and Networking / End of Conference
Speaker bios

Abdelmajid Rhomija
Mr. Abdelmajid Rhomija is the current head of the Higher Institute for Judicial Authorities (ISM). Before his
appointment in 2013, he was the General Secretary of the Ministry of Justice and Freedoms. Prior to this, he
was the Director of Studies, Cooperation and Modernization at the Ministry of Justice, and Chief of Ministry
Cabinet. Born in Meknes, Mr. Rhomija e holds a PhD in law and has been an advisor to the supreme court
for three years.

HE Mr. Michael Lund Jeppesen
His Excellency Mr. Michael Lund Jeppesen was appointed as Denmark’s ambassador to Morocco, Tunisia
and Mauritania in August 2013. Prior to this, he held the position as head of the Department for the Middle
East and Northern Africa at the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Copenhagen, Denmark. He started his
career in Africa where he worked for the UNCHR in Sudan before joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As a
Danish diplomat he has held positions in Brussels, Belgium and Washington DC, USA. From 2006 to 2009
he was the first Head of the newly established Center for Terror Analysis.

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Elisabeth Møller Jensen te B
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Ms. Elisabeth Møller Jensen is the Director of KVINFO since 1990. She holds a MA in Nordic Languages
and Literature and an M.Phil. in Danish from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and she is the editor
of the History of Nordic Women’s Literature. Among her areas of expertise are gender equality and gender
mainstreaming, women’s history, women in politics and women leadership. Ms. Møller Jensen holds
honorary positions in various organizations, i.e. member of the Council for International Dévelopment Work,
member of the jury of Women of Europe Award, Denmark, and member of the Dialogue Forum at the Center
for Equality, Diversity, Gender, University of Aalborg, Denmark. In 2006 Ms. Møller Jensen was appointed
Knight 1st Class of Dannebrog.
Naima Chikhaoui
Ms. Naima Chikhaoui is anthropologist and a University professor at the School of Arts and Humanities in
Rabat. As a researcher who positions herself as an intellectual feminist, she published several articles on the
social relations between men and women in Morocco in their anthropological and sociological dimensions,
about different themes: Women and Islam, Islamic feminism, Moroccan family institution, etc. as well as
contributions on the right to educate young Moroccan girls. As a gender expert, she has a long experience in
conducting studies on gender issues, in particular on gender-based violence.

Leila Hanafi
Ms. Leila Hanafi is a Moroccan-American international lawyer, and policy expert from Washington DC, USA.
Ms. Hanafi is the founder and chief lawyer at the international law firm and think-thank ARPA, the Alliance for
Rule of Law Promotion & Alternative Dispute Resolution, in Washington DC, USA. She is a board member of
Morocco World News, and a member of the intergovernmental Moroccan commission on National Dialogue
with Civil Society on Constitutional Reforms. Furthermore, she is the Middle East and North Africa Legal
focal point, for the Coalition of the International Criminal Court as well as winner of the World Bank Middle
East and North Africa Innovation Fund through which she led a women’s legal initiative in Morocco.

Fatima Zahra Boukaissi
Ms. Fatima-Zahra Boukaïssi is an attorney practicing in Rabat. She is one of the first two women who served
in the Popular Movement’s political office of Mr Mohand Laenser. She is the author of Chapter IV of the
Group for Research and Study on Gender in Morocco (GREGAM) entitled "The conduct of hearings at the
family justice section within the courts of Rabat." Active as a lawyer, Ms. Boukaissi is also a member of the
Moroccan Association Adala, founded in 2005 whose mission is to contribute to promoting the right to a fair
trial.
Nezha El Ouafi
Ms. Nezha El Ouafi is the President of Forum des Compétences Marocaines, an association created to
maximize the contribution of Moroccan abroad to the economic and social development of Morocco. Ms. El
Ouadi is also member of several women’s rights CSOs. El Ouafi has worked on advocacy for Moudawana
implementation for women living abroad and is a member of the Moroccan Parliament’s House of
Representatives.

Malika Touma
Ms. Malika Touma is a prominent jurist and civil society authority. President of the Moroccan Association for
the Protection of Women’s Rights, Mahamed El Ghizlane. Formerly, Ms. Touma worked with the Ministry of
Justice on family law issues for over two decades.

Mohamed Al Hachimi
Mr. Mohame Al Hachimi is a Moroccan attorney and member of the Laywers Association in El Jadida.
Prominent lawyer from South of Morocco, he’s a Lead advocate for women's access to justice in Errachidia
province.

Fatima Daaif
Ms. Daaif is a parliamentarian and member of the Parliamen'ts Commission de Defense des Droits des
Femmes. Avid women’s rights acitivist in rural areas, she was formerly with the Institut royal de la culture
amazighe and is a staunch defender of berber women’s rights.
Jamila Garmouma
Ms. Jamila Garmouma is professor at the Ministry of Education. She’s member of the presidium of the
Fédération de la Ligue Démocratique des Droits des Femmes (FLDDF), president of the network LDDF Injad
against gender based violence which is part of the FLDDF and a board member of the regional office of
FLDDF, Rabat. Withing this association, Ms. Garmouma fights against all forms of gender based
discrimation.

Zakia Mrini
Ms. Zakia Mrini is Founding President of Ennakhil Association for Women and Children (AEFE) and
President of the Moroccan Institute for Local Development (IMADEL). Born in Marrakesh, she holds a Phd in
Geology, and in 1986 won the CNRS prize for the best scientific research. Because of her strong sense of
justice, she believes in fighting discrimination, and has been this politically active for several years, and has
been in local government for several years. Today, Ms. Mrini chairs the municipal council of the Gueliz
district.

Soumia Boutkhil
Ms. Souma Boutkhil is an associate professor of English at Université Mohammed I in Oujda and director of
the Master’s Program in Gender, Society and Human Development. Her academic specialties include
women and gender studies, feminist theory and postcolonial literature and theory.

Jamal Chahdi
Mr. Jamal Chahdi is the president of the Center for Human Rights (CDG) in Fez, a national network created in
1999 to educate people about their rights and to end all forms of discrimination and violence. In 2011, he was elected
by the Federation of Human Rights Centers in the Arab world as a General Coordinator.
Nadia Mzaouir
Ms. Nadia Mzaouir holds a BA in from Hassan II University, School of Law. She joined the Higher Institute for
Judicial Authorities (ISM) in 1991. Assigned as a judge in Casablanca in 1993, she's currently the Vice
President of the Social court. Ms. Mzaouir has also provided trainings at ISM since 2005. Ms. Mzaouir has
herself completed several trainings; training of trainers both in France and Morocco, mediation, family social
psychology, human rights approach, social gender, refugees international law and others.

Leise Døllner
Ms. Leise Døllner is a Danish lawyer, therapist and expert in conflict mediation and Danish family law. She
possesses more than a decade’s experience as a mediator. Under the aegis of KVINFO’s projects in
Morocco, she has during recent years been involved in training Moroccan judges at family courts in
mediation, and in the creation of a guide on the use of mediation in Moroccan family courts. Ms. Døllner is
head of department at The State Administration in Denmark – a public institution possessing legal cases of
Family Conflicts regarding Divorce, Child Custody and Visitation Arrangements. She has a Masters Degree
in Mediation and Conflict Resolution from University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Omar Lamine
Mr. Omar Lamine is the current President of Chamber at the Court of Cassation. He holds a PhD in law and
is a teacher at the Higher Institute for Judicial Authorities (ISM) in Rabat. Mr. Lamine took part of many
training sessions on mediation as a new way for conflict management within Moroccan family courts. He also
participated in training the trainers (Moroccan future judges) to mediation.