Morocco military immunity bill moves forward

A compromise between activists’ concerns and authorities permits the passage of a landmark military law.

By Mohamed Saadouni for Magharebia in Casablanca

The Moroccan House of Representatives’ Foreign and Defence Affairs Committee unanimously ratified a controversial military immunity bill on July 18th.

When first introduced, the draft legislation sparked a legal and political debate, particularly over article 7 of the proposed act, which originally stated that military personnel carrying out orders within the kingdom would not be subject to criminal questioning.

After concerns were raised, a committee further examined the bill, changed the original draft and made amendments to satisfy political sensitivities. The phrase “military personnel shall not be criminally questioned” was replaced by “military personnel shall enjoy the protection of the state”.

The changes also stressed that in order for Royal Armed Forces (FAR) personnel to enjoy immunity, their orders must be related to legal missions at home. The bill protects the military “from exposure to threats, prosecution, attacks, abuse, slander or insult in the practice or performance of their duties or thereafter”.

Minister Delegate for National Defence Administration Abdellatif Loudiyi described the move as serious and “a positive initiative that dispelled ambiguity in the bill”, and lauded the efforts of the committee to reach a compromise draft acceptable to the various political parties.

Loudiyi said that the bill was distinguished for its respect of the principles of new constitution, the rules of international humanitarian law and applicable laws in the military field. He added it took into consideration the advisory opinion of the National Human Rights Council.

However, Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) Chairman Abdelatif Ouahbi criticised the wording of Article 7 as “a provocative and violent drafting” that needs “radical change”.

For her part, Etemad Zahidi of the Justice and Development Party (PJD) said that there was consensus on the respect of the military institution.

“However, to make this bill state that military personnel shall not be criminally questioned, this will cause a problem and will be in direct contradiction with the new constitution, which links between responsibility and accountability and stipulates the equality of citizens before the law,” Zahidi added.

Tariq Esbaai, a lawyer and President of the National Authority for the Protection of Public Funds, told Magharebia that he was surprised the bill was presented to Parliament.

“The circumstances surrounding this bill are ambiguous,” he added. “As rights activists, we fear the consequences of ratifying the military protection law. We’re frankly afraid lest the army should become the force that controls the future of this country after the passage of this law.”

However, Mohamed, a soldier from the southern city of Agadir, doesn’t share Esbaai’s fears.

“This law gives military personnel guarantees similar to what we see in advanced countries,” he said. “Protecting military personnel from criminal accountability doesn’t mean giving them immunity or not prosecuting them; rather it means that the law will be enforced under the protection of state given the extraordinary role of military personnel.”
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