Morocco Considers Prisoner Release to Curb COVID-19 Spread in Overcrowded Jails

The observatory also pleads in favor of minors awaiting trial, people over 65 years of age, prisoners of conscience and peaceful activists. The OMP also recommends reducing the number of remand prisoners in order to reduce prison overcrowding which, due to confinement and promiscuity, can lead to the development of uncontrollable infection hotspots.

It congratulates the DGAPR for the internal measures put in place and invites it to make the recommended disinfectants and hygiene products available to the detainees, and to reduce the number of detainees per cell.

The OMP calls on Morocco to follow the example of Tunisia, where President Kais Saied announced on Thursday a presidential pardon for the benefit of 1,865 detainees on the occasion of the 64th anniversary of the independence holiday. Thus, 670 detainees will be released and the others will benefit from a reduction in sentence.

And that’s not all. He also gave instructions to tighten the supervision of the sterilization of penitentiary units, and called on the special pardon commission to study an additional list of detainees’ files in order to consider the possibility of pardoning them.