Moroccan Rights Group Demands Investigation into Tangier Tragedy, Release of Fnideq Protesters

Five current affairs topics were raised by the OMDH in a press release. These are the death of 28 people in a clandestine textile factory in Tangier, the arrest and prosecution before the public prosecutor’s office of four young men following the demonstrations in Fnideq, the trial of Jawad Amghar, the ban on press conferences by the group of young girls for democracy and the Moroccan Association for the Fight against Corruption "Transparency Maroc", and the perverse effects of the health crisis on economic activity.

Specifically, the OMDH has called for the opening of an impartial and independent judicial inquiry to determine responsibilities and punish the perpetrators of the Tangier tragedy. In this regard, it has urged the Ministry of Labor to set up a mechanism for controlling production units in major cities and to work to eliminate the informal economy.

The NGO has also called on the justice system to respect all the procedures of a fair trial with regard to the trial of Jawad Amghar and the four young people arrested in Fnideq, whose provisional release it has requested. According to it, this decision could help to ease the tension in the city, which is experiencing a severe economic crisis due to the closure of the borders.

Furthermore, while denouncing the "unjustified" ban on press conferences, the OMDH pleaded for government support, through the Special Covid-19 Fund, for people who have ceased their activities due to the health crisis.