Protests by Berbers continue: Morocco must release 135 detained protesters

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) has called on Morocco to release 135 protesters who were arrested since the end of May 2017 because they took part in peaceful protests against corruption and underdevelopment in the Rif Mountains. “The detainees merely expressed their opinion – but Morocco is brutally suppressing any criticism by the marginalized Berbers, for fear that the protests might spread,” criticized Ulrich Delius, the Director of the STP, in Göttingen on Friday. The protests in the city of Al-Hoceima had started in October 2016, following the violent death of a fishmonger. According to the STP, an average of four protesters are arrested in Morocco’s Rif region every day. The Minister of the Interior, Abdelouafi Laftit, has justified the arrests by stating that the measures necessary “to keep public order”. The Berbers make up more than 60 percent of the 33 million inhabitants of Morocco.
There are seven journalists among the detainees. “Apparently, there are attempts to intimidate the media in the kingdom, to keep them from publishing critical reports about the tense situation in the impoverished region and about the protests,” said Delius. Thus, the journalist Mohammed El-Hilali – who works for the online information service “Rif Press” – was arrested recently. He was accused of having slandered officials and is now facing legal proceedings. “El-Hilali was probably arrested because he was interviewed by the Spanish TV station TVE. He had criticized the impoverishment of the people in the Rif region” Delius reported.

The authorities are trying to suppress any criticism concerning the restrictions on the freedom of the press in the Rif region, claiming that journalists can report freely from there. However, foreign media such as the French television station France 24 were kept from shooting footage and from broadcasting reports from Al-Hoceima. Al Aoula – a state television station – and Medi 1TV, which is close to the government, are trying to discredit the protest movement by accusing the protesters of damaging property. However, the damages shown were caused by rampaging football fans in March 2017.
On June 14, 2017, a total number of 25 of the 135 arrested followers of the protest movement Hirak were sentenced to one and a half years’ imprisonment. There are also attempts to initiate proceedings against their leader Nasser Zefzafi, who was arrested on May 29, 2017. His successor, Nawal Ben Aissa, is confronted with such serious threats that she no longer dares to leave the house. Hirak is calling for an end to corruption and to the abuse of power – as well as for more initiatives to develop the region, which is mostly inhabited by Berbers and in which more than 40 percent of the young people are unemployed.

Header Photo: Todd Geasland via Flickr