The editor of Morocco's Al-Ahdath Al-Maghribia daily newspaper, Moktar el-Ghzioui, is living in fear for his life after he expressed support for pre-marital sex during a local television debate.
"The next thing there was a cleric from Oujda releasing a fatwa that I should die," he says.
"I am very scared for myself and my family. It's a real blow to all the modernists who thought Morocco was moving forward."
According to article 490 of the penal code, Moroccans can be jailed for having sexual relations outside marriage. This is based on Islamic law, which bans unmarried people from engaging in sexual activity.
This is why Mr Ghzioui's televised comments created huge controversy in a society that remains predominantly conservative.
The Moroccan Human Rights Association is calling for an overhaul of the penal code in order to tackle the harassment of women, often by sexually frustrated men.
'Sharing hotel rooms'
However, even if the law is changed, sex therapist Abu Bakr Harakat believes that negative perceptions of sex outside the marital home, and the importance many people attach to a woman's virginity, will not change overnight.
"Society forces people to respect laws and not the individual," he says.
For example, last year, a judge ordered a 16-year-old girl, Amina Filali, to marry the man who had raped her, in order to preserve her family's honour.
She committed suicide in March after she was severely beaten by her husband.
This incident happened in a poor rural village in the north of Morocco, where traditional beliefs are strong.
