• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
  • WORLD DEMOCRACY
  • POLITICAL ART
  • more
    • election technology
    • money politics
    • political dissidents
    • THIRD PARTY
      • third party central
      • green party
      • justice party
      • libertarian party
    • voting methods
  • DC INFO
    • author central
    • about
    • advertise with DC
    • contact
    • privacy policy

Democracy Chronicles

Morocco Dissident Jailed for ‘Disobedience’ on Facebook Must be Freed

by DC Editors - February 11, 2019

FacebookTweetLinkedInPin

Morocco Dissident Jailed for ‘Disobedience’ in Facebook Post Must be Freed

From Human Right Watch

(Beirut) – Moroccan authorities should free an entrepreneur who was sentenced to two years in prison in violation of his right to free speech and review his conviction given its abusive nature, Human Rights Watch said today. An appeal of Soufian al-Nguad’s conviction is underway and continues on February 11, 2019.

A court of first instance in Tetouan, a city in northern Morocco, sentenced al-Nguad, 29, co-owner of a real estate agency, to the prison term and a fine of 20,000 dirhams (US$2,000) for inciting people to participate in an unauthorized protest. The case was based on his comments on Facebook encouraging people to join a street protest over the killing of a would-be migrant by Morocco’s Coast Guard.

“Soufian al-Nguad did nothing but express his anger and urge protests over the killing of an innocent woman,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The charges against him are illegitimate, and he should be freed immediately.”

On September 25, 2018, the Moroccan Coast Guard fired on a boat in the Mediterranean, killing Hayat Belkacem, 20, a student, and wounding three other passengers, as they tried to migrate to Europe. Morocco’s state news agency said that the Coast Guard opened fire after the boat acted “suspiciously” in Moroccan waters and the pilot disobeyed their orders. Authorities said they would investigate the killing but have not disclosed any findings.

On September 27, al-Nguad criticized on Facebook the silence of Moroccan political parties after Belkacem’s killing, praised Tetouan’s “ultra” soccer fans who called for a black-clad protest in remembrance of the slain student, and encouraged people to join the protest. Six days later, police arrested and interrogated al-Nguad, whom Tetouan’s prosecutor charged with disobedience, incitement to disobedience, spreading hate, and insulting Morocco’s flag and symbols.

In its written judgment, the court held that al-Nguad “confessed that he was [the author] of the [Facebook] post calling for public protests, in which he participated, wearing black alongside other black-clad protesters, despite his previous knowledge that demonstrations require authorizations to be delivered by competent authorities.”

The judgment also says that al-Nguad wrote in another Facebook post: “Congratulations to the noble royal Coast Guard, who killed Hayat while she was trying to emigrate clandestinely to flee the government, the corruption, and the kingdom of Morocco.” The tribunal found that this post included “expressions inciting to hate and to calls for violence,” and that the usage of the word “kingdom” in such a context was “a core insult to the country’s flag and symbols.”

Human Rights Watch reviewed the Facebook posts over which al-Nguad was indicted, and found nothing in them that supported the charges against him. He was imprisoned merely for criticizing the government and urging others to protest, speech protected by international human rights law, Human Rights Watch said. Moroccan law should not criminalize such acts. And as long as laws remain on the books that make such charges possible, authorities should refrain from bringing them.

“This unfair conviction is just the latest illustration of Morocco’s increasing intolerance of peaceful protest,” Whitson said. “Whenever social anger flares up, authorities promptly scapegoat and lock up activists who dared to challenge them, as a message meant to intimidate the public.”

FacebookTweetLinkedInPin

Filed Under: International Democracy Tagged With: Africa, Journalism and Free Speech, Morocco, Political Dissidents, Social Media and Democracy, Technology Dissidents

About DC Editors

We are your source for news on the all important effort to establish and strengthen democracy across the globe. Our international team with dozens of independent authors are your gateway into the raging struggle for free and fair elections on every continent with a focus on election reform in the United States. See our Facebook Page and also follow us on Twitter @demchron.

Some highlighted Democracy Chronicles topics

Africa American Corruption American Local Elections American State Elections Asia Capitalism and Big Business Celebrity Politics China Democracy Charity Democracy Protests Democrats Dictatorships Education Election History Election Methods Election Security Election Transparency Europe Internet and Democracy Journalism and Free Speech Middle East Minority Voting Rights Money Politics New York City and State Elections Political Artwork Political Dissidents Political Lobbying Redistricting Republicans Russia Socialism and Labor Social Media and Democracy South America Spying and Privacy Supreme Court Third Party Voter Access Voter ID Voter Registration Voter Suppression Voter Turnout Voting Technology Women Voting Rights Worldwide Worldwide Corruption

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Home | ALL NEWS | WORLD | Morocco Dissident Jailed for ‘Disobedience’ on Facebook Must be Freed

Primary Sidebar

Advertise button

Courts off the deep end, again

By Andrew Straw February 1, 2023

Closing the courts, shutting down dissent, and violating the rights of whistleblowers. These are not the actions of an open, free society.

The Christian Evangelical Church

By Jack Jones January 22, 2023

I am not against Big Business having a voice, just not all the voices, and especially not an impersonator pretending to speak for God.

democracy chronicles newsletter

DC AUTHORS

No One In Monterey County Is Good Enough To Serve In Legislature

By Joe Mathews January 9, 2023

California’s “democratic reforms” have left a place as… [key] as Monterey County without any state representation from one of its own.

In America, the Joe-mocracy Rules

By Joe Mathews December 27, 2022

A republic? A democracy? No, our country is an avuncular autocracy run by old guys named joe.

Property Rights, Indiana-Style

By Andrew Straw December 24, 2022

Indiana’s justices have replaced constitutional property rights with ad hominem politics. Replacing them starts with better governors.

To The American Oligarchs: Lay Off Us

By Jack Jones December 21, 2022

No matter how many jobs are ruthlessly pulled out from under us, we are still going to do what it takes to put food on the table.

Indiana’s Irrational Ballot Access System

By Andrew Straw December 4, 2022

Opposing the potential 2024 retention of the Chief Justice Loretta Rush will be key to preventing disability discrimination bad blood in Indiana courts.

Federal Judge Strikes Down Biden’s Loan Forgiveness program

By Jack Jones November 24, 2022

What is unlawful is the Texas federal judge’s decision to strike down President Biden’s loan forgiveness program, not the program itself.

DeSantis Battles Trump in Florida Steel Cage Match

By Steve Schneider November 20, 2022

We take you now to the much-anticipated DeSantis-Trump steel cage match, in which “DeSanctimonious” has promised to “kick Trump’s ass.”

MORE FROM OUR AUTHORS

VISIT OUR POLITICAL ART SECTION:

dc political art

DEMOCRACY CULTURE

Russian Wagner Boss Acknowledges Comparison With Rasputin

Russian Wagner Boss Acknowledges Comparison With Rasputin

January 30, 2023

Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin responded to comparisons [with]…Rasputin who treated the son of the last tsar for haemophilia.

ChatGPT Is Changing Education, AI Experts Say

ChatGPT Is Changing Education, AI Experts Say

January 30, 2023

Newly-launched AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT is changing the internet landscape. It presents several opportunities, including in education.

Girl Scouts Earn Democracy Badge At Workshop In Salina

Girl Scouts Earn Democracy Badge At Workshop In Salina

January 26, 2023

The workshop assisted Girl Scouts in grades K–10 in earning their Democracy Badge through learning activities on democracy.

Study: Media Can Reduce Polarization By Telling Personal Stories

Study: Media Can Reduce Polarization By Telling Personal Stories

January 26, 2023

Sharing personal experiences and pairing them with facts reduces political dehumanization and increases political tolerance.

Study: 2020 Election Resulted In Increased Anxiety And Depression

Study: 2020 Election Resulted In Increased Anxiety And Depression

January 7, 2023

A review of 2020 Household Pulse Survey data reveals that as an election nears, people in [America] report more depression and anxiety.

MORE CULTURE

VISIT OUR US DEMOCRACY SECTION:

American Democracy