Document #2047714
ARTICLE 19, FIDH – International Federation for Human Rights, IFEX – International Freedom of Expression Exchange, RSF – Reporters Sans Frontières, OMCT – World Organisation Against Torture, International Press Institute; et al. (Author)
Dear High Representative Borrell,
Dear EU Special Representative Gilmore,
We, the undersigned organisations, are writing to draw your attention to the case of journalist Maâti Monjib and call for your urgent intervention.
The Moroccan and French journalist Maâti Monjib began a hunger strike on 4 March.
Mr Monjib has lost more than 8 kilos and as he is diabetic with heart problems, his health and life are now in danger. He is visited twice a day by a doctor because of his fragile health.
Also known as a human rights defender, Mr. Monjib has been held in solitary confinement since 29 December 2020 and he was subsequently convicted in absentia on 27 January 2021 to one-year imprisonment on grounds of ‘undermining state security’ and ‘fraud’. No substantive handling of the lawsuit preceded this ruling, which had been postponed over 20 times since 2015. Moreover, neither the lawyers nor the convicts could attend the hearing, while it was the Moroccan state’s responsibility to allow Mr Monjib to attend his court case as he was in their custody at the time. They failed to do so — in clear violation of his right to a fair trial. Mr Monjib still faces charges of money laundering, which was the reason for his arrest on the 29th of December 2020. There has been no progress on this case since then.
The case of Maâti Monjib is illustrative of the increasing repression of independent and critical voices over the last decade in Morocco.
Eleven years after the Arab Spring, the situation for press freedom and freedom of expression in Morocco is dire. Since the end of 2013, journalists, activists and dissidents continue to face ongoing systematic targeting, harassment and detention. Repression has increasingly been used as the answer to the growing social resistance against corruption and social inequality in Morocco.
A pattern can be seen in recent years with the Moroccan authorities filing trumped up criminal charges accusing journalists of rape or fraud in retaliation for their critical work. We are also seeing an increase in prosecutions based on offending public officials or insulting the monarchy.
Other prominent prisoners include:
At least five journalists are currently imprisoned for their work in Morocco, while the country ranks 133 out of 180 countries on the Reporters Without Borders 2020 World Press Freedom Index.
We urge you:
We hope you will take our concerns into consideration and look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely,
List of signatories:
ACAT France
Article 19
Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
FIDH (in the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders)
Free Press Unlimited
IFEX
Index on Censorship
International Media Support
International Press Institute
Middle East Studies Association
PAX
PEN Club Français
Project on Middle East Democracy
OMCT (in the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders)
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)