MOROCCO: ARBITRARY DETENTION OF POLITICAL ACTIVIST NASSER ZEFZAFI

The International League Against Arbitrary Detention urges the Government of Morocco to take all necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 43/2024 concerning Nasser Zefzafi, asking the Government of Morocco to immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Zefzafi and to accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.

Read the full WGAD opinion concerning Nasser Zefzafi (Morocco): Opinion No. 43/2024.

DETENTION OF A LEADER OF THE HIRAK RIF MOVEMENT

Nasser Zefzafi is a Moroccan national born in 1979 and ordinarily resident in Al Hoceima. He is a leader of the Hirak Rif movement, a movement advocating for greater social and economic rights for the inhabitants of the Rif region.

In 2016 and 2017, this movement led to numerous protests, mainly in Al Hoceima and surrounding areas. In this context, on May 26, 2017, Mr. Zefzafi reportedly interrupted the sermon of an imam in Al Hoceima who was criticizing the protests, before being violently arrested by police officers on May 29, 2017. Held in police custody from May 29 to June 5 in Casablanca for “suspicion of acts undermining the internal security of the State”, he appeared before the King's Prosecutor of the Casablanca Court of Appeal on June 5, and several charges were brought against him, under articles 129, 201, 206, 221, 263, 265, 267, 300 to 302 and 304 of the Penal Code and articles 9, 14 and 29 of the 1958 Public Gatherings Act.

In June 2018, he was sentenced in first instance to twenty years in prison after a trial involving 54 defendants who participated in the Hirak Rif protests. This sentence was confirmed on appeal on April 6, 2019 and by the Court of Cassation on June 23, 2021. Mr. Zefzafi's health is reported to have deteriorated during his detention due to the criticized detention conditions in Morocco.

The Moroccan government was given the opportunity to respond to the source's allegations, which it did on May 29, 2024.

ARRESTED WITHOUT WARRANT AND DETAINED WITHOUT PROMPT APPEARANCE BEFORE A JUDGE

Regarding Mr. Zefzafi's arrest, the source claimed that the police did not present a warrant, while the government explained that a warrant was issued and that the arrest complied with international standards. The Working Group concluded that, even if a warrant was issued, it was not presented to Mr. Zefzafi, in violation of article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 of the Covenant.

Furthermore, the source alleged that Mr. Zefzafi was held incommunicado for seven of the eight days in police custody, but the Government claimed that a member of his family was informed of his location of detention. The Working Group therefore did not conclude to an enforced disappearance. However, it considered that by not bringing Mr. Zefzafi before a judge for a week, the Government had violated article 9 (3) of the Covenant.

Therefore, the Working Group concluded that Mr. Zefzafi's arrest and detention were arbitrary under Category I, as they violated articles 3 and 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 9 of the Covenant.

DETAINED FOR EXERCISING HIS FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND OPINION, OF PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION

According to the source, Mr. Zefzafi is detained for exercising his rights to freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of peaceful assembly and association, and those linked to the Amazigh people's minority status. The Government objected to these allegations and replied that Mr. Zefzafi was charged in accordance with national law and for acts that did not fall within the scope of the aforementioned rights.

The Working Group considered that none of the acts attributed to Mr. Zefzafi constituted acts of violence or calls to violence excluded from the scope of freedom of expression and opinion. Accordingly, the Working Group affirmed that Mr. Zefzafi was arrested for his expressions and opinions in violation of article 19 of the Covenant and article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

With regard to the source's assertions regarding the vague wording of the articles of the Penal Code on which Mr. Zefzafi's detention was based, the Working Group expressed its concern that the generality of these articles could lead to abuse by the authorities.

Finally, the Working Group considered that Mr. Zefzafi's detention was linked to his participation in demonstrations against government policies and his ties with members of the Rif diaspora, in violation of his freedoms of peaceful assembly and association. In addition, the Working Group considered that Mr. Zefzafi was detained for acts of advocacy in favor of the rights of the Amazigh people, acts protected by article 27 of both the Covenant and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Consequently, the Working Group concluded that Mr. Zefzafi's deprivation of liberty was arbitrary under category II, as it violated articles 19, 21, 22 and 27 of the Covenant and articles 19, 20 and 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

DEPRIVED OF LEGAL ASSISTANCE AND SUBJECTED TO TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT

In the light of its previous conclusions in Category II, the Working Group noted that no trial should have taken place. However, a trial did take place, and Mr. Zefzafi was sentenced to twenty years in prison.

The source alleged that Mr. Zefzafi had no contact with a lawyer prior to June 3, 2017, and was therefore interrogated without legal counsel. With no response from the Government to this allegation, the Working Group concluded that, contrary to the guarantees provided by article 14(3)(b) and (3)(d) of the Covenant, Mr. Zefzafi was deprived of legal assistance from the time of his arrest until June 3. The violation of Mr. Zefzafi's right to a fair trial was aggravated by his inability to see his family until June 12.

Additionally, according to the source, Mr. Zefzafi was subjected to torture and ill-treatment. The Government, while acknowledging the injuries suffered by Mr. Zefzafi during his arrest, dismissed the other allegations of torture and ill-treatment as unsubstantiated. The Working Group found that the Government failed to demonstrate that it had taken sufficient measures to investigate Mr. Zefzafi's allegations of torture and ill-treatment and the use in the prosecution of testimony obtained by these means, in violation of the right to a fair trial.

Moreover, even though he was judged in a collective trial, the Working Group was unable to conclude that Mr. Zefzafi's case was not individually assessed. Furthermore, the Working Group felt unable to conclude that the conditions and conduct of the trial had resulted in a violation of Mr. Zefzafi's right to a fair trial. However, the Working Group expressed concern about the length of the sentence inflicted to Mr. Zefzafi, considering its conclusions under category II, and about its dissuasive effect on the exercise of rights protected by international law.

In light of these elements, the Working Group concluded that the violations of Mr. Zefzafi's right to a fair trial are of such gravity as to render his detention arbitrary under category III.

DISCRIMINATED AGAINST FOR HIS MEMBERSHIP TO THE AMAZIGH COMMUNITY AND HIS POLITICAL OPINIONS

Since the Hirak Rif protests resulted from discrimination against the Amazigh Rif community, the source claimed that Mr. Zefzafi was arrested and detained based on discrimination established on his membership of the Amazigh community and his political opinions. Given its previous opinions on the arbitrary detention of a Hirak supporter by Morocco, the Working Group considered that Mr. Zefzafi's detention was part of a wider pattern of practices targeting activists from the Amazigh community, and therefore violated articles 2 and 7 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2 (1) and 26 of the Covenant.

Consequently, his detention was arbitrary under category V.

CONCLUSIONS OF THE UNITED NATIONS WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION

In light of the above, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that Nasser Zefzafi's deprivation of liberty was arbitrary and fell into Categories I, II, III and V, as it violated articles 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11, 19, 20 and 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2, 9, 14, 19, 21, 22, 26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention recommended that the Government of Morocco take the necessary measures to remedy Mr. Zefzafi's situation without delay and bring it into compliance with relevant international standards. The Working Group determined that, given all the circumstances of the case, the appropriate remedy would be his immediate release and to grant him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.