WESTERN SAHARA 2017 HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Kingdom of Morocco claims the territory of Western Sahara and administers
the estimated 85 percent of that territory that it controls. The Popular Front for the
Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro (POLISARIO), an organization that
seeks the territory’s independence, disputes Morocco’s claim to sovereignty over
the territory. Moroccan and POLISARIO forces fought intermittently from 1975,
when Spain relinquished colonial authority over the territory, until a 1991 cease-
fire and the establishment of a UN peacekeeping mission. Since 1991, UN-
facilitated negotiations on the territory’s status have been inconclusive. The sides
have not met face-to-face since 2012.

Morocco administers the territories in Western Sahara by the same laws and
structures governing the exercise of civil liberties and political and economic rights
as in internationally recognized Morocco. In 2011 Morocco adopted a constitution
that it also applies to its administration of the territory. Morocco is a constitutional
monarchy with a parliamentary national legislative system under which ultimate
authority rests with King Mohammed VI, who presides over the Council of
Ministers. The king shares executive authority with the head of government
(prime minister) Saadeddine El Othmani. According to the constitution, the king
appoints the head of government from the political party with the most seats in
parliament and approves members of the government nominated by the head of
government. International and domestic observers judged the 2016 parliamentary
elections, held in both internationally recognized Morocco and the Western Sahara,
credible and relatively free from irregularities.

Moroccan civilian authorities maintained effective control over security forces.

The most significant human rights issues were predominantly the same as those in
internationally recognized Morocco, including allegations that there were political
prisoners; limits on freedom of expression, including criminalization of certain
political and religious content; limits on freedom of assembly and association; and
corruption.

The lack of reports of investigations or prosecutions of human rights abuses by

Moroccan officials in Western Sahara, whether in the security services or
elsewhere in the government, contributed to the widespread perception of
impunity.
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Section 1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:

a. Arbitrary Deprivation of Life and Other Unlawful or Politically Motivated

Killings

There were no reports that the Moroccan government or its agents committed
arbitrary or unlawful killings.

b. Disappearance

There were no reports of disappearances by or on behalf of Moroccan government

authorities during the year.

During the year the Laayoune branch of the National Council on Human Rights
(CNDH), a publicly funded Moroccan national human rights institution, continued
to investigate individual claims from previous years. When warranted, the CNDH
recommended reparations in the form of money, health care, employment, or
vocational training to victims (or victims’ families) of forced disappearance from
previous years.

The CNDH continued to monitor the implementation of the recommendations of

the Equity and Reconciliation Commission for former victims of human rights
violations dating to the 1970s and 1980s. The International Committee of the Red
Cross worked as neutral intermediary with the parties and families regarding the
cases of persons still unaccounted for. For more information on unresolved
disappearances dating from the 1970s, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country
Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or

Punishment

Moroccan law and practice apply. The Moroccan constitution and Moroccan law
prohibit such practices, and the government of Morocco denies it allowed the use
of torture.

In the event of an accusation of torture, Moroccan law requires judges to refer a

detainee to a forensic medical expert when the detainee or lawyer requests it or if
judges notice suspicious physical marks on a detainee. Local and international
human rights advocates claimed that Moroccan courts often refused to order

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medical examinations or to consider medical examination results in such cases.

According to local and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),
Moroccan authorities did not always investigate complaints, and medical personnel
sometimes failed to document traces of injuries from torture and abuse.

In July, Sahrawi self-determination activist Hamza El Ansari reported to the court

that police mistreated him and forced him to sign a statement while blindfolded.
The court did not investigate his allegation or exclude the allegedly coerced
statement from the proceedings in either the first instance or appeal trial. He was
released in September after serving his court-imposed sentence.

Reports of torture have declined over the last several years, although Moroccan
government institutions and NGOs continued to receive reports about the
mistreatment of individuals in official custody. Reports of mistreatment occurred
most frequently in pretrial detention. Most accusations stated that degrading
treatment occurred during or following proindependence demonstrations or
protests calling for the release of alleged political prisoners who were in detention.

The UN Human Rights Committee’s final observations on Morocco’s sixth

periodic report in December 2016 for the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights noted that the government of Morocco has taken steps to combat
torture and ill treatment and that there was a “marked reduction” in such practices
since its 2004 report. The committee remained concerned, however, by continued
allegations of torture and mistreatment by government agents, in particular on
persons suspected of terrorism or threats to national security or territorial integrity,
which Morocco defines to include Western Sahara. The April 10 UN Secretary-
General’s report noted that lack of accountability and the persistent lack of
investigation into allegations of violations against Sahrawis were major concerns.

CNDH’s regional offices in Tan Tan-Guelmim, a province that is partially in

Western Sahara but mostly in internationally recognized Morocco, and in
Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra, a province that is completely in Western Sahara,
investigated seven allegations of torture but did not find the allegations to be
substantiated.

Prison and Detention Center Conditions

Prison and detention center conditions generally mirrored those in Morocco.

Conditions improved during the year, but in some cases they did not meet

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international standards. For more information, see the Department of State’s 2017
Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Physical Conditions: Prison and detention center conditions generally were similar
to those in Morocco.

Families of detainees charged that prison conditions were unusually harsh. The
Moroccan Prison Administration (DGAPR), which oversees prisons in the
territory, contested this claim and asserted that prisoners in Western Sahara and
Sahrawi prisoners in Morocco received the same treatment as all other prisoners
under DGAPR authority.

For more information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on
Human Rights for Morocco.

Administration: Moroccan law and practice apply. While authorities generally

permitted relatives and friends to visit prisoners, there were reports that authorities
denied visiting privileges in some instances. The DGAPR assigned each prisoner
to a risk classification level, which determined visiting privileges. At all
classifications, prisoners may receive visits, although the length, frequency, and
number of visitors may vary. Most prisons assigned each prisoner a designated
“visit day” to manage the number of visits to the prison.

Independent Monitoring: The CNDH conducted 31 monitoring visits to prisons in

or near Western Sahara as of September 15. Various NGOs conducted at least 33
monitoring visits through June.

Improvements: For more information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country
Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention

Moroccan law and practice apply. Moroccan law prohibits arbitrary arrest and
detention and provides for the right of any person to challenge in court the
lawfulness of his or her arrest or detention. Observers indicated that police did not
always respect these provisions or consistently observe due process, particularly
during and in the wake of protests. According to local NGOs and associations,
police sometimes arrested persons without warrants or while wearing civilian
clothing.

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Role of the Police and Security Apparatus

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Human rights organizations continued to track alleged abusers who remained in

leadership positions or who had been transferred to other positions. International
and domestic human rights organizations claimed that authorities dismissed many
complaints of abuse and relied only on police statements. Government officials
generally did not provide information on the outcome of complaints. The CNDH
and the Prison Administration reported human rights training for prison officials
and members of the security forces in Western Sahara.

Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Arbitrary Arrest: Security forces often detained groups of individuals, took them
to a police station, questioned them for several hours, and released them without
charge.

NGOs reported several cases of alleged arbitrary arrest and detention, particularly
following proindependence demonstrations, although there were fewer allegations
than in previous years. Authorities argued that such temporary detentions without
charges were not arbitrary but legal under Moroccan law, which allows detention
of suspects without charge for preliminary investigations for up to six days for
non-terrorism-related crimes, and 12 days for terrorism-related crimes. Detentions
noted by local NGOs were generally less than six days.

Pretrial Detention: Conditions generally were similar to those in Morocco, with

large proportions of detainees in pretrial detention; the government of Morocco
does not disaggregate statistics for Western Sahara. For more information, see the
Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Detainee’s Ability to Challenge Lawfulness of Detention before a Court:

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

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United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
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Moroccan law and practice apply. The Moroccan constitution provides for an
independent judiciary, and, as in previous years, NGOs asserted that corruption
and extrajudicial influence weakened judicial independence. On April 6, the king
of Morocco formally appointed the elected and pro-forma members of the Supreme
Judicial Council, a new government body whose creation and composition was
mandated by the 2011 constitution to manage the courts and judicial affairs
directly in place of the Ministry of Justice. While the government of Morocco
stated its aim of creating the council was to improve judicial independence, its
effect on judicial independence was not clear by the end of the year. The outcomes
of trials in which the government had a strong political stake, such as those
touching on Islam as it related to political life and national security, the legitimacy
of the monarchy, and the Western Sahara, sometimes appeared predetermined. For
more information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human
Rights for Morocco.

On July 19, the civilian Rabat Court of Appeals issued new verdicts ranging from
time served to life imprisonment for 23 Sahrawi individuals arrested during the
2010 dismantling of the Gdeim Izik Camp and subsequent violence in Laayoune,
which resulted in the death of 11 members of the security forces. The individuals
had been previously convicted in a military trial in 2013. A 2015 revision of the
Code on Military Justice eliminated military trials for civilians, and in 2016 the
Court of Cassation ruled on appeal that the group should receive a new civilian
trial. Two received reduced sentences (from 25 years to 4.5 years and 6.5 years)
and were released, joining two others whose 2013 sentences of time served were
confirmed by the civilian court. Two other individuals also received reduced
sentences (from 30 years to 25 years and from 25 years to 20 years). Until the
retrial, the Gdeim Izik prisoners constituted the highest-profile group of civilians
still serving sentences imposed by a military court.

In December 2016 the UN Committee against Torture issued a decision finding

that Morocco had violated its treaty obligations in the case of Gdeim Izik detainee
Naama Asfari, who alleged he was convicted by the military court based on a
confession obtained under torture and that no adequate investigation was
conducted. In 2017 the civilian court, as part of the new trial, offered medical
exams in accordance with the Istanbul Protocol to look for residual signs of torture
to the 21 individuals who remained in detention from the group’s 2010 arrests and
interrogations; however, Asfari declined to participate. Reports on the 15
detainees who willingly participated in the exams were admitted as evidence at the

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trial and did not find a link between the detainees’ complaints and the alleged
torture.

Trial Procedures

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Political Prisoners and Detainees

Moroccan law and practice apply. Moroccan law does not define or recognize the
concept of a political prisoner. The Moroccan government did not consider any of
its prisoners to be political prisoners and stated it had charged or convicted all
individuals in prison under criminal law. For more information, see the
Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Human rights and proindependence groups considered a number of imprisoned

Sahrawis to be political prisoners. This number included the Gdeim Izik prisoners
(see section 1.e.) as well as members of Sahrawi rights or proindependence
organizations.

Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

f. Arbitrary or Unlawful Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or

Correspondence

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Expression, Including for the Press

Moroccan law and practice apply. The Moroccan constitution and Moroccan law
generally provide for freedom of expression, including for the press, although they
criminalize and restrict some freedom of expression in the press and social media--
specifically criticism of Islam, of the institution of the monarchy, and of the

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government’s positions regarding territorial integrity and the Western Sahara.

Authorities were sensitive to any reporting not in line with the state’s official
position on the territory’s status, and they continued to expel, harass, or detain
persons who wrote critically on the issue.

Freedom of Expression: Moroccan law criminalizes the criticism of Islam, of the

legitimacy of the monarchy, of state institutions, of officials such as those in the
military, and of the Moroccan government’s position regarding territorial integrity
and the Western Sahara. Sahrawi media outlets and bloggers with opposing views
to the government often practiced self-censorship on these issues.

For more information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on
Human Rights for Morocco.

Press and Media Freedom: Moroccan law and practice apply. Self-censorship and
government restrictions remained serious hurdles to the development of a free,
independent, and investigative press. NGOs asserted that authorities harassed
some journalists by filing charges against them for activities outside of their
profession and delaying prosecution of these charges indefinitely. A press code
passed in 2016 provides greater protection for accredited journalists but does not
cover commentators or bloggers without accreditation, who continue to face
charges under the criminal code. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

The government of Morocco enforced strict procedures governing journalists’

meetings with NGO representatives and political activists. Foreign journalists
needed, but did not always receive, approval from the Ministry of Communication
before meeting with political activists.

Domestic and international media, including satellite television and POLISARIO-

controlled television and radio from the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria, were
available in the territory.

Moroccan government practices were the same as those in internationally

recognized Morocco concerning violence and harassment, censorship or content
restrictions, libel/slander, and national security issues. For more information on
these subheadings, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human
Rights for Morocco.

Internet Freedom

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Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco

Academic Freedom and Cultural Events

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association

Moroccan law applies. As in internationally recognized Morocco, the Moroccan

government limited freedoms of peaceful assembly and association.

Freedom of Peaceful Assembly

Moroccan law provides for the right of peaceful assembly. The government
generally permitted authorized and unauthorized peaceful demonstrations to occur.
According to Moroccan law, groups of more than three persons require
authorization from the Ministry of Interior to assemble publicly. As in
internationally recognized Morocco, some NGOs complained that the government
used administrative delays and other methods to suppress or discourage unwanted
peaceful assembly. Security forces intervened on occasion to disband both
authorized and unauthorized protests when officials deemed the demonstration a
threat to public security. The April 10 UN Secretary-General’s report on the
Western Sahara cited claims by some human rights organizations that authorities
prevented or dispersed 66 out of 776 demonstrations in the territory from April
2016 to April 2017.

Several proindependence organizations and some human rights NGOs stated that
in recent years the submission of applications for permits to hold demonstrations
declined because police rarely granted them. In most cases the organizers
proceeded with planned demonstrations in the absence of authorization, and there
was no discernable difference in security forces’ reaction to authorized or
unauthorized protests. Violent confrontations between security forces and
protesters were less common than in previous years, according to several local
NGOs, although violent dispersals did occur on occasion. Security force practices
were similar to those in internationally recognized Morocco; however, in Western
Sahara there was often a higher ratio of members of security forces to protesters.

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United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
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On March 23, according to media and first-hand reports, a group of approximately

50 unemployed Sahrawis in Laayoune boarded a private personnel transport bus
belonging to a subsidiary of the state phosphate company, one of the major
employers in the region, to protest what they viewed as the company’s broken
promises to employ more Sahrawis. The group ordered the driver and other
passengers to leave, threatening to set themselves on fire if their demands were not
met or if Moroccan police intervened. Following unsuccessful negotiations, police
used water cannons on March 24 to gain access to the bus, causing minor injuries
to approximately a dozen protesters. Injured protesters were transported to a local
hospital and released from care overnight. Several protesters were detained but
released after a few hours.

Freedom of Association

Moroccan law and practice apply. Generally, the government denied official
recognition to NGOs that it considered advocates against Islam’s status as the state
religion, the legitimacy of the monarchy, or Morocco’s territorial integrity. During
the year the CNDH reported receiving complaints from 10 organizations that their
registration requests were denied. Authorities noted that 2,984 organizations were
registered in Laayoune and 937 in Dakhla, the two largest cities in Western Sahara.

The government tolerated activities of several unregistered organizations.

On June 20, Sahrawi activist and president of the unregistered NGO Collective of
Defenders of Human Rights (CODESA) Aminatou Haidar organized a public
commemoration, with Moroccan authorities’ permission, of the 2016 death of
POLISARIO leader Mohamed Abdelaziz. The event, which took place in an open-
air tent and included public display of separatist Sahrawi Arab Democratic
Republic flags as well as a banner describing the location as “occupied Laayoune,”
proceeded without intervention from authorities.

c. Freedom of Religion

See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at

www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/.

d. Freedom of Movement

Moroccan law and practice applies. Moroccan law provides for freedom of
internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, and the

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government generally respected these rights. NGOs and activists alleged that
Moroccan authorities sometimes restricted access to Western Sahara for foreign
visitors, including journalists and human rights defenders. The government of
Morocco claimed it only restricted access when such visits challenged Morocco’s
territorial integrity or were perceived to be a threat to internal security and
stability. The UN Secretary General’s report covering April 2016-April 2017
indicated that Morocco confirmed the expulsion of 187 foreigners from Western
Sahara for threatening internal stability or failing to meet immigration
requirements.

According to Sahrawi NGOs, on January 21, Moroccan authorities removed six

Norwegian activists from international political and human rights organizations
from Western Sahara. According to CODESA and British-based pro-Sahrawi
NGO Adala UK, the activists were removed for conducting interviews without
permission. The government of Morocco responded that the individuals were
expelled from Western Sahara to cities in internationally recognized Morocco in
the interest of maintaining public order in the territory, as the government believed
their purpose was to organize protests. For more information, see the Department
of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

The government of Morocco encouraged the return of Sahrawi refugees from

abroad if they acknowledged the government’s authority over Western Sahara.
Those refugees wishing to return must obtain the appropriate travel or identity
documents at a Moroccan consulate abroad, most often in Mauritania.

Protection of Refugees

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Section 3. Freedom to Participate in the Political Process

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Elections and Political Participation

Recent Elections: In October 2016 Morocco held direct elections for the Chamber
of Representatives (the lower house of parliament). Registered voters in Western
Sahara elected representatives to fill 13 regionally designated seats and for parties’

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candidates to fill the nationally allocated quotas for women and youth
representatives. The major political parties and domestic observers considered the
elections free, fair, and transparent. International observers considered the
elections credible, noting voters were able to choose freely, and deemed the
process relatively free of irregularities.

Participation of Women and Minorities: Moroccan law and practice apply. No

Moroccan laws limit participation of women or members of minorities in the
political process, and participation of women and minorities was substantively
similar to that in internationally recognized Morocco. A substantial number of
candidates for elected offices self-identified as Sahrawi. For more information, see
the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government

Moroccan law and practice apply. Moroccan law provides criminal penalties for
corruption by officials, but the government generally did not implement the law
effectively. Officials often engaged in corrupt practices with impunity. For more
information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights
for Morocco.

Corruption: Substantial development spending and military officers’ involvement

in private business created susceptibility to corruption, as well as opportunities for
impunity, in Western Sahara. Some military officers reportedly relied on
government connections to gain preferential access to fishing licenses or lucrative
contracts for sand and other quarries on state lands. The government and state-
owned enterprises were the territory’s principal employers, and residents sought
civil service jobs and taxi licenses through official contacts.

On March 31, a Moroccan captain of a fishing boat died after setting himself on
fire in front of the local office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Maritime
Fisheries in Dakhla, Western Sahara, to protest the lack of response to a complaint
regarding corruption. The sailor’s widow alleged that her husband had been
pressured to falsify a report submitted to the Royal Moroccan Navy about the
sinking of his ship last year to ensure the ship’s owners received insurance money.
Authorities denied that the captain submitted a complaint alleging corruption but
have since referred the case to the regional office of the CNDH for investigation.
There has been no publicly announced result of the investigation.

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Financial Disclosure: Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information,
see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for
Morocco.

Section 5. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and

Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Abuses of Human Rights

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

The government generally tolerated but did not recognize domestic NGOs that
exhibited proindependence or pro-POLISARIO tendencies.

The United Nations or Other International Bodies: The Moroccan government

cooperated with the United Nations and permitted requested visits on human rights
issues, including an October 22-28 visit by the Subcommittee on Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT). The SPT met with
various ministries, courts, and parliament, and visited detention centers to
interview detainees in Morocco, but it did not publicly confirm whether it visited
Western Sahara or any Sahrawi prisoners in internationally recognized Morocco.

Government Human Rights Bodies: The same government human rights bodies
operated in the territory as in internationally recognized Morocco. For more
information, see the Department of State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights
for Morocco.

Via its regional offices in Dakhla and Laayoune, the CNDH continued to carry out
a range of activities, including monitoring demonstrations, visiting prisons and
medical centers, and organizing capacity-building activities for various
stakeholders. It also maintained contact with unrecognized NGOs. The CNDH
also occasionally investigated cases raised by unrecognized NGOs, especially
those that drew internet or international media attention.

Section 6. Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Section 7. Worker Rights

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a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

The government and employers generally respected freedom of association;

Moroccan unions covering all sectors were present but not active, except in the
phosphate and fishing industries. The largest trade union confederations
maintained a nominal presence in Laayoune and Dakhla, and most union members
were employees of the Moroccan government or state-owned organizations.

b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment

The Moroccan government continued to invest in education in the territory through

the Tayssir cash assistance program and continued to provide child protection
services through the second phase of the National Initiative for Human
Development Support Project. Sahrawis received more assistance per capita from
this program than persons living in internationally recognized Morocco.

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

Also see the Department of Labor’s annual Findings on the Worst Forms of Child
Labor at www.dol.gov/ilab/reports/child-labor/findings.

d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment and Occupation

Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

There were anecdotal reports that Sahrawis faced discrimination in hiring and
promotion.

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

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Moroccan law and practice apply. For more information, see the Department of
State’s 2017 Country Reports on Human Rights for Morocco.

As an inducement to relocate to the territory, wage-sector workers earned up to 85

percent more than their counterparts in internationally recognized Morocco. The
government also provided fuel subsidies and exempted workers from income and
value-added taxes.

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2017

United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor