The government reportedly arrested, detained, and questioned local Christians about their beliefs. The authorities arrested and sentenced several individuals for eating and smoking in public during Ramadan. In May police arrested Shia leader Abdou El Chakrani for alleged financial improprieties, although Shia leaders said Chakrani was targeted for his religious beliefs and his attempt to register an association affiliated with known Shia leaders. Some local Christians reported authorities pressured converts to renounce their faith. The government monitored, and in some cases restricted, religious activities of Muslims and non-Muslims. It continued to restrict the distribution of non-Islamic religious materials, as well as some Islamic materials it deemed inconsistent with the Maliki-Ashari school of Sunni Islam.
According to the National Federation of Amazigh Associations, an Amazigh (Berber) rights group, police officers from the Royal Gendarmerie arrested a local Christian on March 6 in Guelmim and a second on March 10 in Sale. The group stated the two were detained and interrogated about their beliefs. The individual in Guelmim stated he was held for five hours, and the individual in Sale stated police took him off a bus, announced his religion to the passengers on the bus, and then detained him for eight hours. During his detention, he said the police accused him of apostasy and said they would reconvert him to Islam. The two individuals submitted a complaint to the minister of justice on March 18; but as of the end of the year, the authorities had not opened an investigation.
The media reported authorities arrested two men in Zagora for drinking water in public during fasting hours in June. The men were sentenced to a two-month suspended jail sentence and a fine of 500 dirhams ($49). The media also reported during Ramadan at least three people were arrested in Rabat for smoking cigarettes in public.
In May police arrested Shia leader Abdou El Chakrani for financial improprieties at his place of work, but Shia leaders said Chakrani was targeted for his religious beliefs and his attempt to register an association affiliated with known Shia leaders. In April Chakrani tried to register an association in the city of Tetouan called Progressive Messengers, but his application was rejected. A spokesperson for the group said that the creation of the association would be a test of the authorities’ willingness to respect the constitution. The goal of the association was to defend the rights of religious minorities and to support religious, ethnic, and cultural diversity, as well as religious freedom.
Some local Christians reported authorities pressured Christian converts to renounce their faith by informing the converts’ friends, relatives, and employers of the individuals’ conversion.
The MEIA remained the principal government institution responsible for shaping the country’s religious sphere and promoting its interpretation of Sunni Islam. The MEIA continued to provide government-required training and direction to imams and to shape the content of Friday mosque sermons by providing approved topics. It also monitored Quranic schools to prevent what the ministry considered to be inflammatory or extremist rhetoric and to ensure teaching followed approved doctrine. The government continued to require mosques to close to the public shortly after daily prayer times to prevent use of the premises for what it termed unauthorized activity, such as gatherings intended to promote extremism. There continued to be no known Shia mosques.
The MEIA continued to employ more than 500 chief imams and more than 200 female Muslim spiritual guides (murshidat) in mosques or religious institutions throughout the country. The female guides taught religious subjects and provided counsel on a variety of matters, including women’s legal rights and family planning.
The government continued to allow the operation of registered foreign-resident churches, but continued to refuse requests by local Shia groups to register, which religious leaders and legal scholars said prevented those groups from legally gathering for religious ceremonies in public or forming associations under which they could operate legally. Local Christian and Bahai groups continued to report they had not attempted to register with authorities, believing their registration requests would be denied. Nonregistered religious groups received varying treatment by authorities. Some noted they had been able to practice their religion while others reported authorities shut down their gatherings or prevented them from occurring. A number of religious groups reported they continued cooperating with authorities and occasionally informed them of planned large gatherings, for which authorities sometimes provided security.
Local Christians and Shia Muslims continued to state fears of government harassment were part of the reason they refrained from public worship and instead met discreetly in members’ homes. Foreign-resident Christian church officials reported local Christians rarely attended their churches, and the officials did not encourage them to do so as to avoid accusations of proselytizing. Local Christians stated the authorities made phone or house calls several times a year to demonstrate they had lists of members of Christian networks and monitored Christian activities. Foreigners attended religious services without restriction at places of worship belonging to officially recognized Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant Churches.
In December the media reported local authorities in Casablanca prevented a group of local Christians from obtaining legal permission to hold a public religious gathering for Christmas. Authorities reportedly rejected the group’s request to gather by saying that only registered associations could legally obtain such permission. The group then tried to obtain permission by submitting a general proposal to authorities, which did not include their plans for religious practice, but the application was rejected when authorities discovered there were Christian religious elements to the group’s plans.
The king in February instructed the minister of endowments and Islamic affairs and the minister of education to review and rewrite religious textbooks and religious curricula used in public and private schools, with the stated goal of removing any extremist or intolerant references and promoting moderation, tolerance, and coexistence.
The government continued to restrict the distribution of non-Islamic religious materials, as well as some Islamic materials it deemed inconsistent with the Maliki-Ashari school of Sunni Islam. Its policy remained to control the sale of all books, videotapes, and DVDs it considered extremist.
The government continued to permit the display and sale of Bibles in French, English, and Spanish. A limited number of Arabic translations of the Bible were available for sale in a few bookshops for use in university religion courses. Authorities confiscated Bibles they believed were intended for use in proselytizing.
The construction of new mosques, including those constructed using private funds, continued to require authorization from the MEIA. The authorization of the MOI continued to be a requirement for the renovation or construction of churches.
In September local officials in Marrakech rejected the application for candidacy of a Salafist figure running for parliament, stating his past anti-Semitic statements against the Jewish community disqualified him as a candidate for office.
Jews and local Christians stated elementary and high school curricula still did not include mention of the historical legacy and current presence of their groups in the country.
The government continued to disseminate information about Islam over dedicated state-funded Quranic television and radio channels. The television channel Assadissa (Sixth) programming was strictly religious, consisting primarily of Quran and hadith (authoritative sayings and deeds ascribed to the Prophet Muhammad) readings and exegesis, highlighting the government’s interpretation of Islam.
Although the government continued to ban the Justice and Charity Organization (JCO), an Islamist social movement, because of its longstanding rejection of the preeminence of the king’s spiritual authority, the government reportedly tolerated some of its activities while suppressing others. The JCO continued to be able to participate in political demonstrations, hold small conferences, release press statements, and manage internet sites, although the government occasionally prevented the organization from meeting and restricted public distribution of the JCO’s published materials. Because religion and politics are closely linked, it is difficult to categorize these restrictions as being solely based on religious identity.
According to observers, the government tolerated social and charitable activities consistent with its view of Sunni Islam. For example, the Unity and Reform Movement, which shares some leadership with the ruling Party of Justice and Development, and is the country’s largest registered Islamist social organization, continued to operate without restrictions according to media reports.
The monarchy continued to support the restoration of synagogues and Jewish cemeteries throughout the country, efforts it stated it deemed necessary to preserve the country’s religious and cultural heritage and to serve as a symbol of tolerance.
The government continued to fund the study of Jewish culture and heritage at universities. At the University of Rabat, Hebrew and comparative religion were course offerings in the Department of Islamic Studies.
In June the king inaugurated a new royal institute in Fes, the Mohammed VI Foundation for African Islamic Scholars, with the stated aim of promoting religious tolerance and coexistence. The establishment of the foundation brought together 120 Muslim scholars recognized for their knowledge of Islamic law and theology from 31 countries in Africa.
The government hosted the Marrakech Declaration conference in January, which brought together religious scholars and government representatives from across the Islamic world. Under discussion was a statement rooted in Islamic texts on the need to protect religious minorities in Muslim-majority countries. Subsequent to the conference, a number of participants, including the government, publicly stated their support for the declaration.