Morocco TV show apologizes for advising makeup to hide abuse

The morning show “Sabahiyat” featured makeup expert Lilia Mouline who demonstrated some “beauty tips” on a woman’s facial bruises (also done with make-up) to “camouflage traces of violence”, notes Australia’s ABC News.

“After the beating, this part is still sensitive, so don’t press”, the host says in Arabic as she applies concealer to the woman’s bruises. A petition signed by hundreds of women demanded an apology and sanctions against the station. It is unclear if the woman was an actual victim of domestic violence.

In a statement the channel apologised for the “completely inappropriate” piece, saying it was an “error of judgement”, and recognised the “sensitivity and gravity” of issues surrounding domestic violence.

Channel 2M responded to the backlash through an apology on its Facebook page.

In an official 2009-2010 study, it was found that nearly two thirds of Moroccan women had been physically, psychologically, sexually or economically abused, and that of those, some 55 per cent said they had suffered domestic violence. A petition signed by almost 2,000 people was sent to Morocco’s High Authority for Audiovisual Communications, which called a meeting Monday.

Domestic violence is never ok and it’s never normal, but by watching a segment that aired on Moroccan television, you’d never know.

At the start of 2016, Human Rights Watch sent a letter to the Moroccan government expressing concern about the way women who experienced domestic violence were treated. We are helping to spread the message that violence against women is a sign of weakness for men, not of strength.

In Brazil, a woman is assaulted every 15 seconds, according to the non-profit Mapa de Violencia.

The CentrE for Women’s Global Leadership at Rutgers University in the United States launched the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign in 1991.

“We are here to provide solutions to these women who, for a period of 2 to 3 weeks, are putting their social life aside while their wounds heal”.

The host is said to run through the best makeup brands for “heavy coverage” of bruises and cuts.

According to a 2011 study conducted by Morocco’s High Commission for Planning, six out of 10 women between 18 to 64 faced violence in some form in 2010 alone.