(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has condemned the bureaucratic harassment of journalist Ali Lmrabet and the blocking of his attempts to launch a weekly to replace “Demain” magazine, which was banned in May 2003. “There seems to be no limit to how far the Moroccan authorities will go to thwart Ali Lmrabet, but it is vital that […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has condemned the bureaucratic harassment of journalist Ali Lmrabet and the blocking of his attempts to launch a weekly to replace “Demain” magazine, which was banned in May 2003.
“There seems to be no limit to how far the Moroccan authorities will go to thwart Ali Lmrabet, but it is vital that the laws are respected. The authorities have no right to prevent the publication of a new newspaper without giving a valid reason,” the organisation said.
On 12 January 2005, Lmrabet presented the Rabat Lower Court’s Newspapers Department with an application to publish a new satirical French-language weekly. He had previously announced in the press that he intended to call the new publication “Après-Demain”. It came as no surprise to Lmrabet when he was told the name was already taken, so he filed an application for a magazine to be called “Demain libéré”. Department officials tried to find fault with the application, but it was in good order, so the deputy prosecutor told him to return the next day.
The next day, when Lmrabet tried to return to the Prosecutor’s Office, a police officer called him by name and told him he could not enter, while explaining that he was simply following instructions.
Article 6 of the Press and Publication Code states that when an application to publish a newspaper is filed, the authorities must “immediately give [a] stamped and dated provisional receipt. The definitive receipt must be issued within a maximum of 30 days, failing which the newspaper can be published.”
Justice Ministry Press Attaché Khalid Mokhtari told RSF that Lmrabet’s file required “further clarification.”
“I am fully aware that, in order for me to be able to publish a newspaper in Morocco, Justice Minister Mohammed Bouzoubaâ must first check with King Mohammed VI or one of his advisers, because my case is managed directly from the palace,” Lmrabet said.
