Morocco became a highly repressive country under the absolute monarchy of King Hassan II, and continues to be considered repressive under the reign of King Mohammed VI, though the latter has instituted some reforms. Dozens of journalists, artists, and ordinary citizens are regularly sentenced to lengthy prison sentences for exercising basic rights, despite Mohammed VI's transition of the government to an ostensible constitutional monarchy.
Under his father, King Hassan II, Morocco had one of the worst human rights records in Africa and the world, especially during the time period known as the "Years of Lead", which lasted from the early 1960s until the late 1980s; it was a period in the country's history that was known for the brutal repression of political dissent and opposition, that involved wide-scale arrests, arbitrary detention, lengthy imprisonment, and even killings of political opponents. Currently, Morocco continues to face some of these issues, as well as other human rights problems, such as poor prison conditions, the mistreatment of women and the LGBT community, and the widespread use of torture by police. Despite the considerable improvements made in the last several years under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, who has rolled back some of his father's harshest decrees, repression of political dissidence and torture of citizens by officials are still commonplace in Morocco today.
This article deals with Morocco and not the disputed Western Sahara. See Human rights in Western Sahara in that regard. Morocco administers 80% of the territory, hence Moroccan law applies to its "Southern Provinces".
Freedom of expression
Freedom of the press is quasi-absent and many journalists are thought to practice self-censorship. Questioning the legitimacy of the monarchy or the actions of the King is taboo and questioning the kingdom's "territorial integrity" (i.e. the annexation of Western Sahara) is illegal. In 2005 the well-known Moroccan journalist Ali Lmrabet was "banned from practising journalism for 10 years" and fined 50,000 Dirhams (about 4,500 euros) for reporting about conflict in Western Sahara, according to Reporters Without Borders. As of 2007 Lmrabet is still barred from working as a journalist. Many high-profile Moroccan journalists, such as Aboubakr Jamai, Ali Anouzla, Ahmed Benchemsi and Rachid Niny, have been reduced to silence through a combination of imprisonment, heavy fines, advertising boycott and distribution/withholding of state funds. Many online journalists were sentenced to prison for criticizing the King or denouncing rampant corruption by King-appointed governors. Their cases were much less publicised internationally because they were often young journalists writing for small publications or covering regional news (such as Mohammed Erraji from Agadir who was sentenced to 2 years in prison in 2010 for criticising the King's speech)
Between 2000 and 2007, with the appearance in the scene of a few independent francophone magazines, such as Tel Quel and Le Journal Hebdomadaire and their sister Arabic counterparts (e.g. Assahifa Al Ousbouia), government control over the media has moved somewhat from direct intervention to more subtle pressures, such as the use of lawsuits and libel cases.
On May 2, 2007, the New York City-based NGO Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) published their annual report on the "10 countries where press freedom has most deteriorated" where it reported that according to CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon; "Democracy's foothold in Africa is shallow when it comes to press freedom" and that Morocco was among the "Top 10 Backsliders" in 2007 after "having been considered as a leader in its region". In the report, Morocco was considered, along with Tunisia, as the country which "sentences the most journalists to prison in the Arab world".
According to the 2013 Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders has ranked Morocco 136 out of 179, a drop from the 89th position the country held in 2002. As of the 2015 Index, the same organization had placed Morocco at 130 out of 180 countries.
According to Human Rights Watch annual report 2016, Moroccan authorities restricted the rights to peaceful expression, association and assembly through several laws. The authorities continue to prosecute print and online media when they criticize the government, and the king. In addition, authorities imposed administrative obstacles to restrict journalists' work. In Rabat, the police expelled two French journalists and confiscated their tapes claiming that they have no filming authorization. The report said that Moroccan official television allows some space for debate and criticism. However, such debate does not tackle significant issues.
In June 2020, an investigation by Amnesty International alleged that Moroccan journalist Omar Radi, was targeted using the Israeli spyware Pegasus. The rights group claimed that the journalist was targeted three times and spied after his device was infected with an NSO tool. Meanwhile, Amnesty also claimed that the attack came after the NSO Group updated their policy in September 2019.
On 19 April 2022, the Human Rights Watch reported that Rabie al-Ablaq, a social media commentator, risks up to four years in prison on a charge of disrespecting the king. On 11 April 2022, a court in the northern city of al-Hoceima tried the commentator. He was charged on behalf of two videos posted on Facebook and YouTube in which he addressed the king in a casual tone and contrasted his personal wealth to Morocco's widespread poverty.
Moroccan authorities used indirect and underhanded tactics to silence critical activists and journalists. In the 129-page report, "They'll Get You No Matter What: Morocco's Playbook to Crush Dissent," the Human Rights Watch documented a range of tactics that, when used together, form an ecosystem of repression, aiming not only to muzzle dissenting voices but to scare off all potential critics.
It is a criminal offence in Morocco to undermine the monarchy: in August 2023, a Moroccan resident of Qatar was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for criticising the King's policy decisions on Facebook.
In 2025, blogger Saida el Alami was arrested after being accused of "insulting the judiciary" on her blog; she had previously served a custodial prison sentence between 2022 and 2024 after criticising the National Security Directorate and the judiciary.
Political persecution
Government repression of political dissent has dropped sharply since the mid-1990s. The previous decades are sometimes described as the Years of Lead (Les Années de Plomb), and included forced disappearances, killings of government opponents and secret internment camps such as Tazmamart. To examine the abuses committed during the reign of King Hassan II (1961–1999), the government has set up an Equity and Reconciliation Commission (IER), which is to rehabilitate the victims and pay compensation for state outrages against them. This has been hailed internationally as a big step forward, and an example to the Arab world. However, the IER has also come under attack from parts of the human rights-community, since its mission was not to reveal the identities of or prosecute human rights offenders, which most of the victims were requesting.Morocco's Truth Commission: Honoring Past Victims during an Uncertain Present: V. Constraints on the ERC - Human Rights Watch (HRW.org)
There are also persistent allegations of violence against Sahrawi pro-independence and pro-Polisario demonstrators in Western Sahara, considered by Morocco as its Southern Provinces, and Morocco has been accused of detaining Sahrawi independentists as prisoners of conscience.
In May 2006 a delegation from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) visited the disputed territory of Western Sahara and its report from the visit sharply criticized the lack of basic human rights in the region, in particular regarding the Saharawi population. The secret report has been leaked and can be found at for example ARSO.org.
Later the same year, in October, Morocco stopped a planned and earlier agreed visit of a delegation from the European Parliament. The decision came less than 48 hours before the delegation was to leave for Rabat and Western Sahara. The mission was to study alleged human rights violations from both Polisario and the Moroccan authorities.Communique de press de le Parlement Europeen - European ParliamentPolémique autour de la délégation européenne «Sahara» - L'Economiste Morocco evidently has a lot to hide - Socialist Group - European Parliament (texts in English and French).
Morocco claimed that the majority of the members of the delegation were known supporters of the Polisario front, and thus the neutrality of the delegation was not assured. The president of the delegation, Mr Ioannis Kasoulides, contested these allegations saying the composition of the group was not for Morocco to decide, and besides Morocco had already earlier accepted the composition of the group and had furthermore been allowed to influence its visiting program.
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion is generally observed, with some limitations. According to the spokesman for the Moroccan government, "the Kingdom does guarantee not only freedom of worship, but also the building of places of worship for Christians and Jews as well as performing their rituals freely and respectfully.".
It is illegal to proselytize for religions other than Islam (article 220 of the Penal Code, 15 years' imprisonment).
There still exists a Moroccan Jewish community, although most Jews emigrated in the years following the creation of Israel in 1948.
Social rights and equality
Children In Morocco, thousands of children—predominantly girls and some as young as eight—work illegally in private homes as domestic workers, where they often encounter physical and verbal violence, isolation, and seven-day-a-week labor that begins at dawn and continues until late at night. They are poorly paid and almost none attend school. Domestic workers, including children, are excluded from Morocco's Labor Code, and as a result do not enjoy the rights afforded to other workers, including a minimum wage or limit to their hours of work.
However, under Moroccan family law (2004 mudawana) and its Constitution (2012), it is illegal to have minor domestic workers.
The lack of a strong children protection system and dedicated child protection code in Morocco has led to a high number of children in institutions (est. 471,006) and a high rate of children who are abandoned (est. 1 in 300) and contributed to the difficulty in maintaining children's access to justice during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Women and family
In 2004, the Moroccan parliament took steps to improve the status of women and children, and has passed a new family law, Mudawanat al Usra (English: Family Code), which is widely regarded as very progressive by regional standards. For example, men are now permitted only one wife unless their wife signs an agreement. In addition to being candidates in mixed electoral lists, women have a national list in parliamentary elections that allow them for at least 10% of the seats.
In parallel, and in September 2006, a national observatory to fight violence against women was founded. Many state departments, administrations, universities as well as national female associations are sought to coordinate efforts together.New observatory to fight violence against women - AdnKronos International (AKI)