Prosecutors Vow Strict Enforcement of COVID-19 Emergency Measures

The public prosecutor’s office takes seriously its role in ensuring compliance with the provisions of the state of emergency, which aims to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. This is why from the beginning, circulars have been sent to the various prosecutor’s offices, "calling on them to be firm and to ensure the rigorous application of decree-law No. 2.20.292 on the provisions relating to the state of health emergency and the procedures for its declaration."

The various Attorney Generals and Public Prosecutors have also received instructions on the behaviors to be adopted with regard to the dissemination of fake news. According to the Secretary General of the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, "the decree-law is essentially aimed at protecting citizens against the risks of the spread of epidemics, mobilizing all the necessary resources to guarantee their safety and ensuring the continuity of the public service." The repressive provisions of this decree-law are therefore intended to protect society against the risks related to non-compliance with the laws and decisions taken by the public authorities during the period of the state of health emergency.

In terms of sanctions, offenders face a sentence of 1 to 3 months in prison and a fine of 300 to 1,300 dirhams. All those who "obstruct the public forces responsible for the implementation of the state of emergency and who incite citizens to go out in the street and to gather" are concerned. But the public prosecutor’s office can resort to heavier sentences of 6 months to 2 years in prison in case of attack or resistance against the public forces.