Morocco Moves to Reduce Pre-Trial Detention, Ease Prison Overcrowding

This new provision contained in the new Code of Criminal Procedure will help to decongest the prisons, said the Minister of Justice Abdellatif Ouahbi, responding to parliamentarians concerned about the overcrowding of prisons.

According to official figures from the annual report of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, more than 45% of the prison population in Morocco consists of persons held in pre-trial detention. But their fate falls under the jurisdiction of the public prosecutor, who can decide to prosecute or not the suspects at liberty or under arrest depending on the nature of the offense committed and the nature of the case, the minister stressed.

To remedy this, "we have introduced new provisions that will reduce the possibilities of detaining suspects," the minister said, according to whom the new Code of Criminal Procedure will require more conditions to place people in detention.

Ultimately, the reform will require prosecutors to justify their decisions when they decide to place arrested persons in detention. "Judges will be called upon to justify the legitimacy of their decision within 24 hours in the event of an appeal filed by the defense lawyer," Ouahbi explained.