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Resolution 2282 (2019)
Evaluation of the partnership for democracy in respect of the Parliament of Morocco
1. On 21 June 2011, the Parliament
of Morocco became the first partner for democracy with the Parliamentary
Assembly under the terms of Resolution
1818 (2011) on the request for partner for democracy status
with the Parliamentary Assembly submitted by the Parliament of Morocco.
2. The Assembly recalls that upon making its official request
for this status, the Parliament of Morocco declared that it shared
the same values as those upheld by the Council of Europe and undertook
substantive political commitments in accordance with Rule 64.2 of
the Rules of Procedure of the Assembly. When granting the status,
the Assembly took note of these commitments and pointed to a number
of specific measures which were essential to strengthen democracy,
the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms
in Morocco.
3. Progress in taking forward reforms was the prime aim of the
partnership for democracy and should constitute the benchmark for
assessing the effectiveness of this partnership. In 2013 and 2015
the Assembly reviewed the progress achieved in implementing the
political commitments and reforms considered to be essential (Resolution 1942 (2013) and Resolution 2061 (2015) on
the evaluation of the partnership for democracy in respect of the
Parliament of Morocco).
4. After seven years of implementation of the partnership with
the Parliament of Morocco, the Assembly makes a positive assessment
of its results. In this context, the Assembly notes that Morocco
has made progress in strengthening democratic governance and calls
on the authorities to pursue and take ownership of the reforms so
as to implement fully the ambitions of the 2011 constitution.
5. As regards the political commitments entered into by the Parliament
of Morocco upon requesting partner for democracy status, the Assembly:
5.1. notes the maintaining of the de facto moratorium on the death
penalty applied since 1993, a clear trend towards restricting the
scope of capital punishment and the continuing debate on its abolition,
both within civil society and among its institutions. Nevertheless,
the Assembly is still concerned that the Moroccan courts continue
to impose the death penalty. The Assembly reiterates its call on
the Moroccan Parliament to work towards abolition of the death penalty
and, pending such abolition, to promote a de jure moratorium
on executions. It also encourages the Moroccan authorities to sign
and ratify the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death
penalty;
5.2. welcomes the professionalism with which the Moroccan authorities
organised the 2016 parliamentary elections, and the prior reform
of the electoral legislation, even though it was passed less than
one year before polling. The Assembly encourages the Moroccan Parliament
to take on board the recommendations of the National Human Rights
Council and the ad hoc committee of the Bureau of the Assembly on
the observation of the elections of 7 October 2016 (Doc. 14201 rev)
in order to come up with ways of improving the representation of
Moroccans living abroad and their participation in parliamentary
elections. It calls on the parliament to promote the debate on modifying
the system of voluntary voter registration in order to strengthen
the legitimacy of national elections;
5.3. welcomes the improved representation of women in the political
sphere and encourages the Moroccan Parliament to act on the proposals
of the National Human Rights Council to increase the proportion
of women voters registered and to introduce lists which alternate
between female and male candidates at local elections. The Assembly
encourages the Moroccan Parliament to consider the possibility of
increasing the number of seats in the House of Representatives reserved
for women and allocated on the basis of national electoral lists,
and of introducing incentives for political parties with a view
to increasing the number of female candidates in the other lists.
It recommends repealing the provision prohibiting the re-election
to the House of Representatives, for a national electoral constituency,
of any person who has already been elected to the said House for
that constituency. The Assembly also welcomes the decision to open
up the profession of adoul (notaries
who specialise in certain civil, family and property-related matters
in Islamic law) to women and invites the Moroccan authorities to
step up the protection of women against all the forms of violence
and discrimination from which they suffer, including in inheritance
and marriage matters;
5.4. calls on the Moroccan authorities to continue with the
process begun in 2011 to create a common legal area between Europe
and Morocco by ratifying the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance
in Tax Matters (ETS No. 127), as amended by the 2010 protocol (CETS
No. 208) and the Council of Europe Convention on the Counterfeiting
of Medical Products and similar Crimes involving Threats to Public
Health (CETS No. 211). It also calls on the Moroccan authorities
to take up the 12 invitations from the Committee of Ministers to
accede to certain conventions before those invitations expire. It
once again calls on the Moroccan authorities to accede to the European
Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (ETS No. 126) and the Council of Europe
Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (CETS No. 197)
and the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating
Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No. 210);
5.5. welcomes the high-quality dialogue with the Moroccan Parliament,
whether with regard to the Moroccan delegation’s level of participation
in the Assembly’s activities or the various forms of co-operation
set up between 2015 and 2018 between the parliament and the Assembly.
It calls for a deepening of this dialogue and states its willingness,
in due course, to give thought to how the partner for democracy
status could develop in the future;
5.6. welcomes the fact that the Congress of Local and Regional
Authorities of the Council of Europe granted to Morocco, in April
2019, the status of Partner for Local Democracy.
6. In addition, the Assembly:
6.1. urges
the Moroccan authorities to take ownership of the reforms at national
level by strengthening the resources available to parliament, and
at local level by the implementation in practice of the process of
devolution; to this end, the expertise of the Assembly, the Congress
of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe and the
European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission)
could be requested;
6.2. notes with satisfaction the progress in the construction
of a State governed by the rule of law, in particular the passing
of almost all the institutional acts provided for in the 2011 constitution
and the reform of the judiciary, which has, among other things,
made the public prosecution service independent of the Ministry
of Justice; calls on the Moroccan authorities and the Attorney General
of the King at the Court of Cassation to make a clear contribution
to a change of culture in the judiciary by promoting the principle
of proportionality of sentences, both through a revision of the
Penal Code and by sending general instructions to the members of
the Public Prosecutor's Office, when one and/or the other proves necessary;
6.3. takes note of the results of the Universal Periodic Review
carried out by the United Nations Human Rights Council; applauds
the active role of the National Human Rights Council and the Royal Ombudsman
in defending human rights, and the recognition enjoyed by these
institutions in civil society; welcomes the extension of the powers
of the National Human Rights Council to the implementation of the
National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture, and to the protection
of the rights of children and of people with disabilities; and encourages
the Moroccan authorities to promptly finalise implementation of
these mechanisms;
6.4. urges the Moroccan authorities, in particular the parliament,
which has expressed its commitment to the fundamental values of
the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms which
stem from the partnership, to address the issues identified in these
areas by representatives of civil society, the media and the United
Nations and to ensure respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms;
as well as freedom from discrimination, and guarantee that human
rights defenders, civil society and the media can operate in an
environment that is conducive to their work;
6.5. asks the Moroccan authorities to reinforce their efforts
to respond to the issues of concern raised in paragraph 5 of Resolution 2061 (2015);
6.6. welcomes the migration policy adopted by Morocco, based
on a comprehensive and inclusive vision of the integration of migrants
into Moroccan society;
6.7. urges the Moroccan Parliament to abolish the provisions
of the Criminal Code that criminalise sexual relations between adults
of the same sex or between adults of different sexes who are not
related by marriage, as well as adultery, notes that no action has
been taken in response to the recommendations on this subject set
out in Resolution 1942
(2013) and Resolution
2061 (2015), and urges the Moroccan authorities to introduce
a moratorium on the enforcement of Articles 489, 490 and 491 of
the Moroccan Penal Code, pending their abolition.
7. Recalling its Resolution
2004 (2014) on the parliamentary contribution to resolving
the Western Sahara conflict and Resolution 2061 (2015), the Assembly
reaffirms its strong support to the ongoing efforts by the United
Nations Secretary-General to find a political solution in the Western
Sahara. It concurs with United Nations Security Council Resolution
2414 (2018), which encourages the parties “to work with the international community
to develop and implement independent and credible measures to ensure
full respect for human rights, bearing in mind their relevant obligations
under international law”.
8. The Assembly takes note of serious concerns raised by the
United Nations Secretary-General about alleged human rights violations
in Western Sahara and urges the Moroccan authorities to ensure that
these concerns are duly addressed, in accordance with their international
obligations and in the spirit of respect of the basic values upheld
by the Council of Europe. In this regard, it welcomes the role played
by the National Council on Human Rights commissions operating in
Dakhla and Laayoune, and Morocco’s interaction with Special Procedures
of the United Nations Human Rights Council.
9. In the field of intergovernmental co-operation between the
Moroccan authorities and the Council of Europe, the Assembly welcomes
the positive assessment made on 21 March 2018 by the Committee of Ministers
of the implementation of the Neighbourhood Partnership with Morocco
2015-2017, particularly with regard to the technical aspects. It
is pleased to see the continuation of this partnership for the period
2018-2021 and the projected increase in the resources to be allocated
to it.
10. The Assembly resolves to continue to review the implementation
of political reforms in Morocco and to offer its assistance to the
Moroccan Parliament, and to make a new assessment of the partnership
when appropriate.