Morocco

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the circulation ban on an issue of the Spanish weekly “Cambio 16”. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard asked the minister to “reconsider this decision, which shows once again that the authorities do not hesitate to censor foreign newspapers when they report on […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the blocking of the Internet site of the weekly “Rissalat Al Foutouwa” (www.fotowa.com), voice of the student section of the Islamic association Al-Adl Wal Ihsane (Justice and Spirituality). RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard urged the minister to “lift the mechanisms blocking the […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the seizure of an issue of the weekly “Rissalat Al Foutouwa”, voice of the student section of the Islamic association Al-Adl Wal Ihsane (Justice and Spirituality). RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard urged the minister of the interior to “reconsider this decision.” He […]

(CPJ/IFEX) – In a 1 March 2001 letter to King Muhammad VI, CPJ expressed its deep alarm about the prison sentences and harsh financial penalties handed down on 1 March against two journalists at the weekly “Le Journal Hebdomadaire”. Abou Bakr Jamai, publications director of “Le Journal Hebdomadaire” and Ali Ammar, the newspaper’s general director, […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the seizure of the French weekly “Courrier International”. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard asked the minister to “cast aside this decision, which once again demonstrates that the authorities are prepared to censor foreign newspapers as soon as they report on sensitive issues.” […]

(IFJ/IFEX) – The following is a 12 December 2000 IFJ press release: Journalism in Crisis in Morocco: the Press Code must be reformed With regard to the freedom of information situation in Morocco, the Executive Committee of the International Federation of Journalists, meeting in Sydney on 8 and 9 December, wishes to express its solidarity […]

(ARTICLE 19/IFEX) – The following is an ARTICLE 19 letter to Minister for Human Rights Mohamed Aoujar: M. Mohamed Aoujar Minister for Human Rights Rabat, Morocco By fax: 00 212 37 67 19 67 11 December 2000 Dear Minister We understand that your government has now prepared draft laws relating to the media as part […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to King Mohammed VI, RSF emphatically protested the government’s decision to ban the three weeklies “Le Journal”, “Assahifa” and “Demain”. The newspapers are accused of “threatening the state’s stability” after having implicated the current prime minister in the attempted coup d’état against Hassan II in 1972. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi, RSF emphatically denounced the Ministry of Culture and Communications’ withdrawal of Claude Juvénal’s accreditation. Juvénal is the Agence France Presse (AFP) Rabat bureau chief. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard asked the prime minister to “reconsider the decision,” which he described as “intolerable.” The organisation believes that […]

(RSF/IFEX) – RSF is alarmed over the serious deterioration of press freedom in the kingdom in recent months. Attacks on press freedom have multiplied since the start of the year, notably in recent days, with the arrest of three French journalists and a minister’s threats against a Moroccan journalist. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard believes it […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi, RSF condemned the deterioration of press freedom in the kingdom. Robert Ménard, RSF’s secretary-general, called on the prime minister “to put an end to these violations of press freedom which have been multiplying since the beginning of the year. The most recent incident, placing a […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Prime Minister Abderrahmane Youssoufi, RSF expressed its concern about threatening statements by Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, against Aboubakr Jamaï, director of the weekly “Le Journal”. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard asked the prime minister “to give an opinion on such behaviour, which is not fitting for a government […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Minister of the Interior Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the ban on the first issue of the private weekly “Al Ousboue wa al-Sahafi”. RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard urged the minister “to annul this decision,” and recalled that “since 1 January 2000, Moroccan authorities have imposed a circulation ban on eight […]

(RSF/IFEX) – In a letter to Interior Minister Ahmed Midaoui, RSF protested the close surveillance of journalist Joseph Tual, of France 3 television, and the confiscation of his video cassettes by customs services at the Rabat airport. RSF asked the minister “to provide an explanation for these measures, which are an attack on the right […]

*Updates IFEX alerts of 15 and 4 May 2000* (CPJ/IFEX) – In a 17 May 2000 letter to King Muhammad VI, CPJ expressed grave concern about government restrictions on press freedom in Morocco during the year 2000. During the past four months, Moroccan authorities have taken punitive measures against the press, including the censorship of […]

(RSF/IFEX) – The following is a 12 May 2000 RSF press release: Seven newspapers censored, two journalists forbidden to write RSF launches an appeal to Mohammed VI for the respect of press freedom In recent months, seven Moroccan and foreign newspapers have been victims of censorship and two journalists are threatened with prison sentences and […]