COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CONCLUDES REVIEW OF REPORTS OF MOROCCO

CERD
62nd session
4 March 2003
Morning




The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination concluded this morning its review of the fourteenth, fifteenth and sixteenth periodic reports of Morocco on how that country fights racial discrimination.
Responding to questions raised by Committee Experts, the Moroccan delegation said, among other things, that the Amazigh were full-fledged Moroccans who enjoyed their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights like other citizens. The delegation added that recently, the "Tifinagh" had been introduced as a script for the Amazigh language. The introduction of this script was aimed at reducing illiteracy among the Amazigh people.
Nourredine Amir, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur to the reports of Morocco, said that the dialogue with the delegation had been constructive and fruitful, and it would continue. The members of the Committee would formulate their recommendations in light of the discussion which had further strengthened the dialogue with the State party.
Participating in the discussion were Committee Experts Patricia Nozipho January-Bardill, Jose A. Lindgren Alves, Regis de Gouttes, Mohamed Aly Thiam, Kurt Herndl, Agha Shahi, Mahmoud Aboul-Nasr and Mario Jorge Yutzis.
The Committee will issue its written concluding observations and recommendations on the reports of Morocco towards the end of its three-week session, which concludes on 21 March.
As one of the 167 States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, Morocco must present periodic reports on its efforts to fight racial discrimination.
Before adjourning its morning meeting, Chairperson Ion Diaconu briefed the Committee on miscellaneous issues under its short notice agenda item. The idea of inviting former South African President Nelson Mandela to address the Committee was also raised, with the Chairperson informing the Experts that Mr. Mandela might not be available to come during the current session. An Expert suggested that the Committee place Guyana under its urgent action procedure and that it discuss the situation there during the current session.
When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m., it will take up the thirteenth to sixteenth periodic reports of Ecuador (document CERD/C/383/Add.8).

Response of Morocco
The members of the Moroccan delegation provided responses to questions raised by Committee Experts in the previous meeting. They said, among other things, that the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination had been widely disseminated in the country. The various reports submitted by Morocco to international monitoring bodies had also been disseminated.
Acts of torture were punishable by law, the delegation said. The punishment included not only those who perpetrated the act of torture but also those who ordered it. The Government had been carrying out efforts to implement the provisions of the Convention against Torture since it acceded to the treaty in June 1993. It had so far presented two periodic reports to the Committee against Torture, and the third one would be submitted soon. Further, the Government had put in place legal provisions to punish acts of torture in the country. An independent commission had also been set up to compensate torture victims.
The Government established social indicators each year in order to determine the social conditions of the population in matters of employment, health, education and housing, the delegation said. The Government had made available adequate resources to improve the social conditions of its population in all areas. Morocco had also prepared a report under the 20/20 initiative with the view to implementing the work of the Copenhagen Summit on Social Development.
On the issue of the harmonization of domestic legislation with the provisions of the Convention, the delegation said that a series of reforms had been undertaken concerning civil liberties, particularly the right to association and assembly and the freedom of expression. The adoption in 1999 of the prison law had made prison conditions more humane, and conditions had improved. Young prisoners were provided with vocational training. Also, the situation of women prisoners had been ameliorated. Members of a parliamentary commission regularly visited prison premises to monitor the condition of prisoners.
The Amazigh people were full-fledged Moroccans who enjoyed their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights like other citizens, the delegation said. In its preamble, the Constitution recognized the rights of all citizens without distinction. Recently, the "Tifinagh" had been introduced as the official script for the Amazigh language. The introduction of this script was aimed at reducing illiteracy among the Amazigh people.
The teaching of human rights had been incorporated into the national education system, the delegation said. Any connotation to racial or sexual bias had been systematically discarded from textbooks. Students in elementary schools were taught about human rights.
The practice of polygamy was regulated by law and the authorization of a judge was necessary to conclude such a marriage, the delegation said. The first and second wives should be informed about the marriage. According to the personal act, a woman could include a monogamous clause before marrying a man.
The right to Moroccan nationality was regulated by the law of 1958 and it was conducted in a manner that ensured that no one would be left stateless, the delegation said. Moroccan nationality could be obtained through either juris solis or juris sanguinis.
The Government of Morocco had started a reform of its Penal Code a year ago, the delegation said. Since the reform was profound, no date for its completion has been set. However, it was expected that once the reform was finalized, it would substantially contribute to the respect and promotion of human rights. In Morocco, racial discrimination did not exist; nevertheless, acts of humiliation or insults could be characterized as racial discrimination.
The right of citizens to access to courts and the right to be treated equally before the law had always been a constitutional right, the delegation said. Article 10 of the Constitution stipulated that "one could only be arrested, detained or punished in accordance with the law".
Morocco had been acting positively to resolve the problem of the Western Sahara in accordance with United Nations resolutions, the delegation said. A number of ideas had been presented. The Security Council would decide by the end of this month on the options presented by the parties involved.
The press law of Morocco provided for punishment for encouraging acts of racial discrimination, the delegation said. The dissemination of any ideas of superiority of one race or racial hatred was criminalized according to article 39 of the press law.
Although Islam was Morocco's State religion, other beliefs or creeds were allowed without any discrimination, the delegation said. As a pillar of the Moroccan juridical system, Islam guaranteed the free practice of any other religion in the country. Article 6 of the Moroccan Constitution stipulated that "Islam is the State religion that guarantees to all the free practice of beliefs".
The society of Morocco did not distinguish its citizens in terms of their colour, the delegation said. Jews, black persons and women were all represented in public affairs without any discrimination, and they also served in foreign missions.
There had never been any incidents targeting Synagogues, Churches or other worship centres in Morocco, the delegation said. People lived in harmony and with full respect to one another.
NOURREDINE AMIR, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur to the reports of Morocco, said that the dialogue with the delegation had been constructive and fruitful and it would continue. The delegation had responded to all the questions raised by the members of the Committee. The State party was in a continued process of development, making changes to cope with the changing world. The members of the Committee would formulate their recommendations in light of the discussion, which had further strengthened the dialogue with the State party.



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