Moroccan Court Upholds Suspended Sentences for Journalists in Pension Fund Leak Case

According to the lawyers of the accused, these sentences were confirmed against these clients with a fine of 10,000 dirhams (920 euros) for each of them.

A complaint was filed against them, since the beginning of 2018 by the president of the second chamber of Parliament, for having published excerpts from the debates of a parliamentary inquiry commission devoted to the deficit of the Moroccan Pension Fund (CMR). The same sentence was confirmed against a deputy member of the Democratic Confederation of Labor (CDT, trade union) central, for violation of professional secrecy, after having provided them with information on these debates.

As for the accused, they express their surprise and believe they have done their job of informing the public on a subject that aroused interest. They intend to appeal to the Court of Cassation.

In Morocco, journalists continue to be prosecuted under the Penal Code despite the new Press Code, which came into force in 2016 and no longer provides for prison sentences.