Morocco - Comments on Proposed Media

For   example,   the   draft   Law   on   Press   and   Publication   retains   several   problematic   prohibitions,   including   for   insulting   Islam   and   insulting   the   Royal   family,   while   doing   away   with   the   jail   sentences   that   were   previously   associated   with   these   offences,   replacing   them   with   significant   fines. [...]   Article   9   of   the   draft   Law   on   Professional   Journalists,   prohibits   press   agencies,   defined   in   the   draft   Law   on   Press   and   Publication   as   including   periodicals,   from   employing   journalists   who   do   not   have   a   press   card   issued   by   the   National   Press   Council. [...]   This   type   of   requirement   is   a   violation  of   the   rights   to  both   freedom  of   expression   and   freedom  of   association.3   Making   membership   mandatory   effectively   allows   the   National   Press   Council   to   serve   as   a   gatekeeper   regarding   who   can   and   cannot   work   as   a   journalist,   unnecessarily   restricting   the   ranks   of   the  . [...]       Article   37   of   the   draft   Law   on   the   National   Press   Council,   which   allows   for   journalists   to   be   sanctioned   for   any   conduct   which   impacts   the   dignity   of   the   profession,   should   be   restricted   to   instances   of   professional   misconduct   (such   as   plagiarism  or  inventing  quotes). [...]       Recommendations:     Ø Article   9   of   the   draft   Law   on   Electronic   Press   should   be   amended   so   that   liability   for   advertisements   lies   exclusively   with   the   party   that   purchased   those  advertisements.