Morocco Sees 19% Surge in Complaints Against Government Officials, Report Shows

During a press conference held in Rabat on May 13, Amina Bouayach, president of the National Council for Human Rights (CNDH), said that her institution received 3,018 complaints in 2021 against 2,536 in 2020, an increase of 19%. The number of protest sit-ins has also increased. The CNDH report specifies that some 13,441 protest movements in which 669,416 people participated were recorded against 8,844 in 2020. A 52.3% increase that is explained by the use of social networks.

The council also reports that the authorities have prevented a number of vigils, some of which have been dispersed by force. "In a number of cases, the intervention resulted in the arrest of protesters and the prosecution of some of them for insulting the public force, assault and battery, disobedience and violation of the state of health emergency," the institution explained. Based on these findings, it calls for the need to establish a law regarding the use of force during demonstrations in order to ensure "control by the public prosecutor’s office".