An effective judiciary system can help promote economic well-being and attract investors, Moroccan decision-makers agree.
By Naoufel Cherkaoui for Magharebia in Rabat
[AFP/Abdelhak Senna] Moroccan Justice Minister Mustapha Ramid says that the judiciary is a locomotive for growth and economic prosperity.
With consultations on the judiciary reform under way, Moroccan politicians and experts debate how justice can help foster economic prosperity.
The judiciary is still required to ensure optimal activation of economic and social rights, argued Chamber of Councillors chief Mohamed Cheikh Biadillah.
“This activation will not come about without adapting legislative tools to constitutional developments,” he said on Friday (September 28th). “It will also require a revolution in the curriculum and content of training programmes for magistrates, and more specialisation in the juridical aspects of commercial and social law.”
According to Biadillah, “the judge’s role in the protection of economic and social rights comes first by ensuring rights and responding to needs including his own, given that he is also a citizen affected by the rights contained in the constitution”.
For his part, Justice Minister Mustapha Ramid said last Friday that the judiciary is a locomotive for growth and economic prosperity because it encourages investment and guarantees the rights of individuals.
“An adaptive judicial system, and the legislative that is just, fair, equitable and effective, are required,” he said. He noted that the national dialogue on the judicial reform had put in place mechanisms to protect the efficiency of the judiciary and ensure rights and freedoms.
Law professor Mehdi Mounir, who teaches at Mohammed V University in Rabat, commented that the judiciary suffers from certain flaws, including “the weakness of the training of some lawyers”.
“There are also other issues such as when the judiciary disregards some procedural formalities and regulations, which also leads to the loss of a number of rights,” he told Magharebia. “For example, real estate cases fall under the economic rights of individuals, yet some of these cases take up to thirty years. There are several factors that cause citizens not to enjoy their economic and social rights. The legislator contributes to this loss through procedural rules.”
Mounir added that “the new constitution contains general rules and emphasises good governance, which remains the base that needs to be activated”, but “human resources are required to administer the constitution”.
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“It is a difficult problem that we must work to resolve it because good governance ensures economic, social and cultural rights,” he said. “In order to fix this situation, the legislative system should be reviewed through the establishment of a committee to holistically revise the formulation of laws. This will serve to demonstrate and explain the obligations and the rights of the parties, including the state, the institutions and the citizens.”
“Care must be taken to ensure proper scientific, juridical and academic training. Institutions must also be modernised by infusing new personnel,” the professor concluded.
The role of the judiciary, however, is not confined to resolving disputes, mentioned Abdelkader Chentouf, a member of the Central Bureau of the Hassania Association of Magistrates. It “has gone beyond that to become a factor in the development and promotion of investment,” he said.
“The judiciary realises this goal by ensuring the freedom of financial and economic transactions and ensuring the rights of investors by promoting a climate of confidence that is the cornerstone of any economy,” Chentouf concluded.
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