Salma's university education

I met Salma in 2011 when she was 7, the daughter of Rabha El Haimer, a young single mother who was battling through the courts to have her sham marriage recognised. That would mean that her daughter could have a good future, without being classed as illegitimate, a social outcast. I left the BBC to make a cinema documentary Bastards about Rabha's legal fight using Morocco's reformed sharia law. Rabha won, registered Salma's birth, and got her a decent education, despite being a single mum who couldn't read or write herself. You can read Rabha and Salma's stories in their own words by scrolling down. Now aged 19, Salma is embarking on a degree in Accountancy and Finance at Abdelmalek Essaâdi University in Tangiers. The fees are free, but there is no government maintenance grant so Salma will continue to live at home with Rabha, whose salary is not high. GBP £9000 would help hugely with Salma's living costs during her three year degree course. This would include food, bills, transport, clothes, books, student club membership fees, internet access, a new computer and printer, and perhaps a study abroad trip one summer. I hope you would like to help.

My husband Dr Mark Smithies and I have watched Rabha and Salma grow and flourish, with the particular help of Gerald Loftus, then Director of the American Legation in Tangiers, and his wife Marie-Helene Loftus. They hosted a Bastards screening for local single mothers, which Gerald wrote about here, and invited Rabha and me to speak. Rabha impressed them so much that they created a job for her as Legation housekeeper. This was life-changing. Since 2014, Rabha has enjoyed the safety and security of a good employer, supportive colleagues, paid holidays, and above all, health insurance. Excellent medical care meant that in 2019 Rabha survived ovarian cancer, yet another massive insult in her short hard life, and she is now healthy and happy. Salma worked hard to catch up on her education in Tangiers, and received free English language classes at the American Language Centre, thanks to its Director Mark Holbrook. She now speaks good English as well as French and Arabic. Mark and I have kept in close touch with Rabha and Salma, and also become friends with Mark Holbrook and the Loftuses. Bastards changed our lives too.

You can read here about the making of Bastards which premiered in 2014 at the Institute for Contemporary Art in London, and Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff, and was selected for many international film festivals, winning awards and critical acclaim. It had a UK independent cinema tour, and aired on television around the world including in Morocco where it attracted an astounding 30% of the viewing audience. It was picked up by BBC Storyville Global and by The Why, a Danish initiative to air human rights films in countries where they can have most impact, so Bastards has been in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Vietnam and many other countries where women's rights have a long way to go. The film is now available to view in many parts of the world on Amazon Prime and in America from Icarus Films.

Marie-Helene & Gerald Loftus with Rabha & Salma in 2014 in Tangiers

Salma & Rabha in 2011 when filming began

RABHA'S STORY (translated by Karima Sbitri)

What was it like being filmed through such a stressful traumatic period of your life?

There was a mix of emotions. Even though it was a difficult time I had a lot of hope and was optimistic that it would all get sorted out. I will always remember the hardship: even though I'm smiling now there are bad things that happened that I will never recover from. But eventually I was happy that Salma was acknowledged and given her rights and given her rightful surname. I'm grateful to God. I've made great friends through the film. I feel so lucky and privileged because I saw other people at the Association Solidarite Feminine Centre in Casablanca who really struggled and went through some really bad experiences. I feel really lucky compared to them. Despite all the hardship I went through I feel really lucky.

How did you feel when Gerald and Marie-Helene offered you a new job in Tangiers?

At the time in 2014, I was out of work, but had just got home from the place where I was trying to learn to read, when I got a phone call from Yhtimad from in Tangiers. She said the Director of the American Legation wants to offer you a job, and she asked me if I was willing to move from Casablanca to Tangiers. She explained all the practical things and I said yes! That day was one of the happiest days of my life, I remember it so clearly. I called my sister Fatima and told her and she said 'go go go! don't hesitate'. It was a bit difficult … it was hard because I had got so used to living without a family and I was moving even further away, but the Legation staff became my family. It was a bit difficult to get used to a new city but it was all worth it, because Salma and I started this new life together and everything started getting better. I was able to focus on Salma rather than worrying about how to make ends meet, and where we would get money from day to day. There was a new Director at the Legation when the Loftuses left, and he was so compassionate and understanding if I needed to leave early to pick up Salma from school etc.

Salma is now three years older than you when you gave birth to her. How do feel seeing her complete high school and starting university?

I raised Salma and have been responsible for her throughout her whole life but now she is the one in charge! I am always consulting her and asking her opinion. She is an adult now and she is very responsible. She had to grow up when I was diagnosed with cancer and had to go through treatment. She really matured and learned how to look after herself, and look after me. The greatest news was when I got the all clear. I am grateful to her and to all the people who supported us in that difficult time. We are happy with our new home - it has windows which we didn't have in Casablanca! - and Salma passed the high school Baccalaureate and is going to university.

Lots of good things have happened since the film. New job and new home, and I thank everyone - Deborah, Gerald and Marie-Helene, the Legation, the doctors, Karima, everyone who supported us.

SALMA'S STORY

Hello everyone - I'm Salma Amiri, that little girl from Bastards, but not little anymore, I'm 19 years old now. Today I'll take you back to when the documentary was shown on 2M a Moroccan television channel. At that time I didn't really know what was going on, but the documentary made realize what my mom been through. She definitely deserved to live a normal life but it is what it is. The documentary changed our lives for the better, and introduced us to some amazing people.

After Gerald and Marie Héléne Loftus saw the documentary, they offered my mom the job of her dreams. We had to move to Tangiers to begin a new and amazing life. When she had a stable job, she had enough time to take good care of me but not good enough care of herself, and this leads us to when she got diagnosed with cancer. It was the worst experience of my life. As you know my mom is really strong and didn't want to leave me at a young age, therefore she survived. While our life was slowly back to normal, unfortunately we lost the only man we had, her father. My grandpa was the best!

As you have seen, when we were in Casablanca, we lived in a shared room with my aunt Salima, sharing a kitchen and bathroom with our neighbours, but now we have a really nice place to live, so much better, because my mom has a regular income. I still can't believe I have my own bedroom haha. You may have noticed that I speak English. That wouldn't be possible without the offer of Mr. Mark Holbrook to study at the American Language Center. This year I'm going to college. The bus takes an hour and 45 minutes each way, but it's worth it. I would love to have my own place to live one day, but for now I'm happy to live at home. I am doing my best to get a job to help my mom with my education costs, but it's not easy in Morocco. Getting a degree in Accountancy will make all the difference to me - I hope - and I should be able to get a good job. Then everything will change and I can support myself, and help my mom.

I'm so excited to explore adulthood, and make the next generation of my family better, and of course help my people and my country. After the darkness there's light. The person who brought light to the darkest moments of our lives, is of course Deborah. She made the world hear about my mom's story, and when we reached out for her help she didn’t resist. She and my mother are my role models. I want to grow and be as amazing as you guys! Lastly, I'd like to thank everyone that made a change in our life. THANK YOU SO MUCH!