• Human Rights in Morocco
    While authorities have pledged to reform law and practices to conform to the bold human rights affirmations in the 2011 constitution, a judiciary lacking in independence continues to convict and imprison critics, using repressive laws such as those that penalize “insulting” the monarchy and state institutions. Authorities often tolerate street protests, which are increasingly widespread, but sometimes disperse them violently and then file dubious charges against their leaders. In Western Sahara, Moroccan authorities move swiftly to prevent demonstrations in favor of self-determination for that disputed region. The 2004 family code advanced women’s rights but other laws discriminating against women persist.
  • Protesters in Iraqi Kurdistan
    © 2011 Samer Muscati/Human Rights Watch
    A year of progress in eliminating violence against women
    On November 25 every year, a grim accounting takes place: the world takes stock of violence against women, the toll it takes, and progress toward eliminating it. The International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women has been commemorated on November 25 for more than three decades. It’s a day each year when my colleagues and I focus on the courageous women we have met, the injustices they’ve suffered, and the hope they inspire.
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Morocco/Western Sahara

  • A year of progress in eliminating violence against women
    Nov 24, 2012
    On November 25 every year, a grim accounting takes place: the world takes stock of violence against women, the toll it takes, and progress toward eliminating it. The International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women has been commemorated on November 25 for more than three decades. It’s a day each year when my colleagues and I focus on the courageous women we have met, the injustices they’ve suffered, and the hope they inspire.
  • Morocco: Abuse of Child Domestic Workers
    Nov 15, 2012
    Girls as young as 8 endure physical abuse and work long hours for little pay as domestic workers in Morocco.
  • Morocco: Restore AFP Reporter’s Accreditation
    Oct 22, 2012
    Moroccan authorities should restore the accreditation of Agence France-Presse (AFP) journalist Omar Brouksy and stop retaliating against foreign media for what they report.
  • Morocco: Contested Confessions Used to Imprison Protesters
    Sep 17, 2012
    A Moroccan court on September 12, 2012, sentenced five activists of the pro-reform February 20 Movement to prison terms, and one to a suspended term, for assaulting and insulting police officers after what may have been an unfair trial, Human Rights Watch said today.
  • EBRD: Use Expansion to Promote Rights
    May 18, 2012
    The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) should articulate concrete human rights benchmarks for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia as it expands its operations into the Middle East and North Africa.
  • Letter to President Mirow Regarding EBRD Country Assessments and Operational Priorities for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia
    May 17, 2012

    We write to urge you to ensure that the EBRD’s upcoming process of creating country assessments and operational priorities for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia is used to provide an honest assessment of these countries’ commitment to and application of the principles articulated in Article 1 of the EBRD's founding agreement. In particular, we urge you to articulate concrete benchmarks in these country assessments, underlining the steps each government should take to work toward the Article 1 principles. 

  • Comments on the EBRD's Technical Assessments for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia
    May 17, 2012

    Human Rights Watch takes this opportunity to comment on the EBRD’s technical assessments for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia. Below, we highlight omissions and developments since the drafting of the assessments, which we encourage you to reflect in drafting the upcoming country assessments and operational priorities for these countries.

  • Morocco/Western Sahara: No Action on Police Beating of Rights Worker
    May 14, 2012
    The failure of Moroccan authorities to follow through on investigating the beating by police of a Human Rights Watch research assistant is a case study of impunity for police violence.
  • Morocco: Prison for Rapper Who Criticized Police
    May 11, 2012
    The sentencing of a rapper on May 11, 2012 to one year in prison for “insulting the police” shows the gap between the strong free-expression language in Morocco’s 2011 constitution and the continuing intolerance for those who criticize state institutions. The sentence was handed down one week before the opening of the international Mawazine music festival in Rabat, which is held under the patronage of King Mohammed VI.
  • Morocco: Drop Charges Against Detained Rapper
    Apr 18, 2012
    Moroccan authorities should drop charges and release a rapper who has spent three weeks in pretrial detention on charges that he insulted the police in his songs and a video set to his music. Police arrested Mouad Belghouat, known as “al-Haqed” (the sullen one), on March 29, 2012, because of a YouTube video with a photo of a policeman whose head has been replaced with a donkey’s. The lyrics denounce police corruption.
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