Moratorium Under Scrutiny: French Citizens Face Death Penalty in Morocco

French citizens sentenced to death? According to the French association Ensemble contre la peine de mort (ECPM), at least four French citizens "are currently under sentence of death in the world: two men in Morocco, one in China, and one woman in Algeria," reports RTL.fr.

In Morocco, the death penalty has not been legally abolished. It is provided for in the Penal Code to punish aggravated homicide, torture, armed robbery, arson, treason, desertion, and certain types of attacks concerning the king or members of his family (stricto sensu, as defined by the Penal Code). However, its implementation is limited by a de facto moratorium and the frequent use of royal pardon.

In April 2024, Moroccan abolitionist organizations published an investigative report carried out in collaboration with ECPM. In this report, they called on the Moroccan state to commit concretely to the abolition of the death penalty in their country, as can be read on the ECPM website. They expressed concern about the situation of those sentenced to death in Morocco and demanded concrete progress towards the abolition of the death penalty.