COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS EXAMINES REPORT OF MOROCCO

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights today concluded its consideration of the fourth report of Morocco on its implementation of the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Abdelslam Seddiki, Minister of Employment and Social Affairs of Morocco, said that the Kingdom of Morocco’s ratification of the two Covenants in 1979 had reinforced in 2013, by the ratification of other core international instruments, namely the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances, and the withdrawal of reservations and the ratification of a number of Optional Protocols. Morocco reiterated its commitment to maintaining cooperation with the United Nations human rights system, and considered its contribution in promoting and improving the performance of the system as one of its strategic priorities. Morocco had contributed to the process of the strengthening of the treaty body system by proposing a number of initiatives to improve the roles of the Human Rights Council. It had also positively interacted with Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, nine of which had visited Morocco to date.

Experts commended the numerous high-level and diverse delegation and expressed appreciation for the report and the follow-up written responses. They raised concerns regarding the disparity in poverty levels between rural and urban areas, maternal mortality rates in rural areas, the possibility of abortion, domestic violence, access to pre-school education, the quality of education in the public system, forced evictions, and the rights of same-sex couples, among other issues. Serious concern was raised by Experts regarding the problems in the Western Sahara, including environmental problems and the mining industry that affected the local population, the wall in the Southern Provinces, the adoption of an organic law on the use of the Amazigh language, the existence of polygamy, and the unemployment rate among women.

In concluding remarks, Rodrigo Uprimny, Committee Member and Country Rapporteur, said that he hoped the concluding remarks would be widely distributed among the civil society and the citizens in Morocco, and that the next report by the State party would be submitted on time.

Mr. Seddiki stressed that there was still a lot to be done, and the delegation made solid commitments on behalf of the Government of Morocco to persevere in its efforts to guarantee the rights of citizens to enjoy economic, social and cultural rights to the fullest.

Waleed Sadi, Committee Chairperson, reminded that international standards had been adopted by the international community with the participation of all societies. The argument that local sensitivities had to be taken into account did not hold. It was those local sensitivities that had to take into account the international standards, and not the other way around.

The twenty-member Moroccan delegation included representatives of the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs, Inter-Ministerial Delegation of Human Rights, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Specialization, Ministry of National Education and Professional Training, Ministry of Solidarity, Women, Family and Social Development, National Centre for Evaluation of Programmes of the High Commission for Planning, Ministry of the Interior, Agency for the Promotion and Economic and Social Development for the Southern Provinces, Ministry of Justice and Liberties, Ministry of Habitat and Urban Policy, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Culture, Social and Environmental Economic Council, Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture and the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Morocco to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Committee will next meet at 3 p.m. today when it will consider the second periodic report of Sudan (E/C.12/SDN/2).

Report

The fourth periodic report can be read here: E/C.12/MAR/4.

Presentation of the Report

ABDELSLAM SEDDIKI, Minister of Employment and Social Affairs, said that the Kingdom of Morocco’s ratification of the two Covenants in 1979 had been reinforced in 2013 by the ratification of hardcore international instruments, namely the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances, the withdrawal of reservations and the ratification of a number of Optional Protocols. Morocco reiterated its commitment to maintaining cooperation with the United Nations human rights system, and considered its contribution in promoting and improving the performance of the system as one of its strategic priorities. Morocco had contributed to the process on strengthening the treaty body system by proposing a number of initiatives to improve the role of the Human Rights Council. It had also positively interacted with Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, nine of which had visited Morocco to date.

Fully aware of the need for a comprehensive treatment of human rights issues, Morocco had adopted a series of measures, including the Citizen Platform for the Promotion of Human Rights Culture, the National Plan of Action on Democracy and Human Rights, the National Charter for Reform of the Justice System, the National Plan for Equality and Equity, the National Initiative for Human Development, the Development Model for Southern Provinces, the National Strategy to Support Creativity and Culture, the National Strategy on Heritage, and the National Charter for Environment and Sustainable Development. Morocco had also adopted several sectorial public policies. Eleven national institutions on human rights, sustainable development and governance had been created, and the implementation of the National Initiative for Human Development, whose main objective was to fight poverty, social exclusion, and vulnerability, continued.

Mr. Seddiki stated that a number of positive indicators in the area of poverty reduction, access to education and training, health care, maternal and infant mortality, access to housing, job creation, social security, gender equality, and access to water and electricity had been confirmed by reports of several international organisations. That included the award in 2015 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation for achieving the first Millennium Development Goal related to the reduction of extreme poverty and hunger two years ahead of the deadline.

Questions by Experts

RODRIGO UPRIMNY, Committee Member and Country Rapporteur, stated that there was no doubt that in recent years considerable progress had been made. The adoption of the Constitution in 2011 had improved the legal basis of such rights, as had the adoption of policies and institutions, such as the National Council for Human Rights - the National Human Rights Institution. There had been a significant reduction in infant and maternal mortality rates.

There still were however, causes for grave concern, including the absence of an organic law on the Amazigh language, self-determination in the Western Sahara, discrimination against women, and privatization of education which led to a two tier system.

Article 19 of the Constitution, which enshrined the principles of equality between men and women, stipulated that that had to occur within the setup of Morocco. What did that mean in practice?

Did international treaties have primacy compared to domestic law? Could individuals invoke the Covenant following the entry of force of the 2011 Constitution? Could the delegation provide examples of court rulings where the Covenant was invoked?

What was the role of the State in protecting economic, social and cultural rights under the new Constitution of 2011? Was it a protector or a mediator, the Expert asked.

Question was asked about the discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual individuals. According to the Criminal Code, same-sex relations were criminalized. More details were sought on that issue.

A bill had been drafted on the fight against corruption, however anonymity for whistleblowers was not assured, and the Law to Protect Witnesses was insufficient to protect them. Could the National Body to fight Corruption make the cases of corruption public and did it have regional branches?

The delegation was asked to provide a breakdown of social spending.

What were the commitments regarding asylum seekers, and what did they mean in practice?

Question was asked on data on the reduction of the poverty gap between urban and rural areas.

What body was in charge of women’s rights, the Expert inquired. Could updated information be provided on the gender-sensitive budget?

What was Morocco’s position on the ratification of the Optional Protocol?

Could the main achievements of the Equality Plan (2011-2015) be shared and was a future plan in the pipeline? If so, would it be focused on human rights?

Another Expert asked to what extent the category of economic, social and cultural rights was considered by the courts.

How many of the cases heard by the Ombudsman were on economic, social, and cultural rights?

Corruption, by diverting resources, violated human rights, an Expert commented and asked what was being done in that regard.

Another Expert focused on the right of the people of the Western Sahara to dispose freely of their natural resources. There was no information on the exploration, export, and sales of the natural resources of that area. The delegation was asked to provide more details in that regard. To what extent had the Government sought the consent of the Saharawi people when it came to the exploitation of their natural resources?

What were the positive results and challenges of the ten-year plan of action for children.

There was a lack of a broad law combatting discrimination, which would encompass all the aspects of non-discrimination contained in General Comment 20 of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, an Expert noted.

Civil society had allegedly not been consulted in the drafting of the report, and the concluding observations had not been broadly distributed. Could the delegation comment on that?

An Expert said that in its previous concluding observations the Committee had recommended that a lasting solution be found to the problem of the peoples of Western Sahara. If the population did not accept the statute of autonomy, what would happen? Which segment of the population would be asked to vote on the Statute of Autonomy?
Another Expert said that the unemployment rates were still high. How were the governmental measures evaluated and corrected when not working?

Was there data on small enterprises? What effect did they have on women and their income generating activities?

An Expert inquired whether social security also benefited refugees and asylum seekers.

How many labour inspectors were there, how many inspections were carried out and did they issue reports? Did the labour inspectors have a means of transport in remote areas?

Did the minimum salary guarantee a decent living for the worker and their family, an Expert asked.

Regularization, or the transition from the informal to the formal economy, for small enterprises was commendable. However, were the rights to a decent salary and collective bargaining respected when the transition was made? What ensured that the informal working population, which amounted to about 40 percent, enjoyed their rights?

Was the nine percent unemployment rate considered as an achievement or a challenge? Could a breakdown of that rate be provided, including women’s and youth unemployment, an Expert inquired. What was being done to encourage businesses and employment, he wanted to know.

Questions were asked about the law on employment of persons with disabilities.

Was the National Plan on Improvement on Working Conditions, and the other plan still in place? If not, how did the Government plan to achieve access to occupational medical care in private companies?

Had the article imposing restrictions on the right to strike been amended or removed?

An Expert stated that employment of women had significantly dropped between 2009 and 2012, and made up only one third of all employees. That was due to discrimination against women in employment as well as education. Did the State party have any specific policy to address that issue?

Sexual harassment was not criminalized except at the work place and only if the perpetrator was a hierarchical superior. Was criminalization of sexual harassment applied or not in practice? Judicial procedures regarding complaints were very slow.

The delegation was asked to provide information on judicial action on the protection of the right of workers.

The Constitution was a step back in that it limited the number of cases where one could set up a union. What was the State party’s position on that issue?

How was the poverty line determined, the Expert wanted to know.
Replies by the Delegation

The delegation said that, in spite of the limited resources, but thanks to the democratic climate, the vigour of the institutions and the will of the people, reforms had been undertaken. The Constitution ensured that Morocco was well on the way to becoming a fully democratic country. There was separation of powers, and human rights were universal.

Morocco was an Islamic State, not a Muslim State, and there was a big difference. Each group developed at its own pace. Civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights were clearly enshrined in the Constitution. Around 90 percent of the children attended State schools. Most hospitals were state hospitals.

An ambitious decentralization project to create regions and give power to local authorities was well under way, and it included the Western Sahara provinces.

Morocco had an unwavering commitment to help the Secretary-General’s envoys and the Security Council to find a political and definitive solution for the Western Sahara. It had undertaken a promising and ambitious initiative to propose a broad autonomy to the provinces, which would respond to the principle of self-determination. Those provinces already exercised their right to self-determination through the elections this year, which had been commended by the international community and had resulted in new communes.

The delegation explained that the Southern Provinces made up 59 percent of the national territory and three percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The Gross Domestic Product per capita in that region was higher than in other regions. Public investment per capita there was one and a half times the national average. The average unemployment rate was a little over three percent. A new, integrated regional plan had just been drawn up.

In the Southern Provinces, 15,000 community representatives had been consulted with respect to natural resources. The conclusion was that exploitation had to be done with the notion of prior consultation and sustainability for local people. That would be done by allocating the majority of resources to the local community. A phosphate-extracting company was the largest employer in the area, while a number of small and medium enterprises were its subcontractors.

Regarding participation of civil society, the delegation informed that a number of workshops had been held and the Inter-Ministerial Agency for Human Rights had involved all stakeholders in drafting reports, including the report under discussion now.

The Constitution stipulated a positive commitment of the State to guarantee economic rights.

Morocco had grown steadily over the previous decade, with over four percent per year and the recent extra growth had been enjoyed by the Southern Provinces where the average was six percent and the North which had a growth of eight percent per year. The services sector contributed to 60 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. A new plan helped reduce the rural poverty in areas. Farming was growing by six percent and the rural-urban gap was closing.

Questions by Experts

An Expert regretted the lack of information on forced evictions and homelessness. What anti-poverty measures had been undertaken to ensure that all those who were vulnerable had equitable access?
Did the Government intend to evict 4,000 Amazigh, as per the court ruling granting an order of expulsion? What measures would the Government undertake to prevent their forcible eviction from their lands? What was done to give them access to water which had been polluted by the mining industry?

Another Expert asked if the Government had allocated a budget to child protection.

What was the balance between the two pillars of the agricultural plan – high added value agriculture on the one hand and solidarity agriculture on the other hand? Was small scale farming regulated?

Was more done to promote maternal breast-feeding? Were employers compelled to allow female workers to have time off for breast-feeding during working hours?

What was Morocco’s position on malnutrition, an Expert asked.

Another Expert wanted to know if there was a national cross-cutting plan to combat poverty.

What were the plans to prohibit polygamy and child marriage?

A number of questions were asked on violence against women. How many people had been imprisoned for violence against women in 2014? In order to press charges, a medical certificate was needed, the Expert said. Did domestic violence also include marital rape? There was no protection order for victims. How many shelters did Morocco have? Why were not all public hospitals equipped to deal with that form of violence? Why was not medical care free in that respect, and why were rapists allowed to marry their under-age victim of sexual violence?

On education, an Expert stated that there was a lack of quality education and clear educational guidance, while drop-out rates were high.

There was no organic law that could promote the teaching of the Amazigh language. The teaching language in primary and secondary school was Arabic, while it was French at the university. How did the State party intend to improve in that regard?

What being done to ensure that private education did not jeopardize public education?

Replies by the Delegation

The delegation informed that there would be a second Equality Plan. Regarding the Children Plan, an information system to protect children had been made operational.

Regarding efforts to reduce disparity between rural and urban areas, budgetary resources had been given to the development fund and the mountains fund, which had tripled over the previous seven years. There had also been a reduction of population suffering from malnutrition.

Primary school attendance rate had increased, the delegation informed.

The delegation said that since 2005, over nine million people had benefited from the national initiative against poverty, and a drop in the poverty rates had been recorded. Four million women had benefited from the projects, or 50 percent of all women. More than 400,000 women and girls had benefited from education and over 3,500 projects had taken place in the area of health. 45,000 women had benefited from income generating activities.

Judges had been trained to fight against corruption. Laws were implemented to protect witnesses and experts. There was a central authority for fighting against corruption since 2011, but no regional branches.

A helpline had been created in 2015, allowing the arrest of 11 individuals for discrimination against women. Article 19 of the Constitution was based on the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and other relevant international documents. Definition of discrimination was based on Article 1 on the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination.

The Law on Civil Status, actions promoting women, quota systems for elections, and public fund supporting women were all in place.

Sexual harassment was being targeted, the delegation said, and the Government was broadening the concept. It would now include texting, cyber harassment, direct harassment at work, harassment by the authorities or acquaintances of the victim, especially when the individual is a minor.

Regarding polygamy, it was explained that under the law one could only marry one. The family law allowed polygamy, but only if all the wives were treated equally. Only 3.4 percent of the marriages were polygamous. Forced marriage was illegal and the legal age of marriage was 18.

In 2014 a drop in cases of violence against women had been recorded, namely by 6.2 percent in terms of complaints and by 4 percent in terms of cases taken to the court. People working in units dealing with violence against women were constantly trained and retrained. Medical certificates were provided free of charge.

The delegation explained that the mining conflict was an environmental conflict. The population had not been moved from the affected areas, which were among the richest places in the region.

Much progress had been achieved regarding the national plan to eliminate slums in order to do away with the phenomenon of indecent habitats.

Regarding the informal sector, the delegation conceded that it was difficult to measure it. Since 2011, the financial law had provided for tax breaks, including reduction of ten percent of taxation on companies in the informal sector. There were about 20,000 companies that benefited from it.

There were two components of “Green Morocco”: one solidarity-based agriculture and the other modern. The solidarity based component covered 75 percent and was based on coordination with the community and it promoted agricultural diversity and the introduction of new crops. Thirteen billion euros worth of investment had gone to it. People benefiting from it had seen a 5,000 dirhams increase in their income.

Child malnutrition, stunting and child labour levels had fallen by several percentage points.

Whereas in 1992 over 50 percent of the children had been breast-fed naturally, that number today was smaller by half. A draft law was being prepared in that regard. Just the previous week, a workshop had been launched with the World Health Organisation on that project. The Government fostered efforts towards natural breastfeeding. Working females were allowed a special break of 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon for breast-feeding.

Migrants and asylum seekers were entitled to health and basic services as any other citizen. The law forbade discrimination in the health system, including on the basis of ethnic origin.

Regarding questions on equality of public and private education, the delegation said that there was a guidance providing the basis for improving the quality of education in the public system. The number of children in private education had not changed, and remained at 12 percent since 2008.
The problem of basic skills and ensuring quality were still an issue for the educational system. The two departments of traditional and vocational education trainings had been integrated in an effort to provide more suitable education. In secondary education, practical vocational education training was starting to be introduced. There was, nonetheless, still a management and administration problem in the public education system.

Education was free of charge, which led to over-crowding and the problem of quality. This was a matter of national priority. The 2013 Plan of Action created an Agency for Quality Education, for which the Director had just been named. The 2015-2030 Vision was divided into programmes and plans of action for the short, medium and long terms.

The matter of teaching in minority languages had been discussed, with the conclusion that the national language had to remain a priority, while international languages such as French, English and Spanish had to be taught as well.

Regarding the labour code and inspections, there had been 40,000 inspections in the agricultural sector, the delegation said.

Morocco had ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2008 and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in 2014, as well as a number of Optional Protocols.

Regarding the Government plans to fight unemployment, the delegation said that the 25.3 percent women unemployment rate was a matter of concern, and the Government was in the process of finding a solution to that. The second problem was youth unemployment. A National Employment Strategy for Youth had been adopted and many measures were being undertaken in that regard, including the increase of unemployment agencies throughout the country.

On the Amazigh question, the delegation stated that it was true that those were the first inhabitants, but since thesixth century, many other peoples had arrived and influenced the ethnic composition of Morocco, which included Mediterranean African Arab Muslims and Berbers. The ethnic diversity was the strength of Morocco and the national unity ought to be preserved. Terrorism was the primary enemy of human rights. Over 20 organic laws had been adopted, and the law on the Amazigh language would probably be adopted before the end of 2016. There was a TV channel that was fully broadcast in Amazigh, and all national channels had programs in the Amazigh language. Over 600,000 students were currently studying in 4,000 Amazigh schools. Once the law was adopted, the Amazigh language would become official.

The death penalty was still a matter of debate, on which the country had to find consensus.

Regarding abortion, a committee had been set up and a solution had been found, which satisfied both pro and anti-abortion individuals.

Questions by Experts

An Expert was concerned that maternal mortality rates in rural areas were high, and asked what was being done to fight that trend.

What was the solution for abortion. The Expert wanted to have further details.

Overcrowding in prisons remained a problem. Had any measures been taken since 2011?

Approximately 50 percent of children had no access to pre-school education. Could the delegation cite specific measures to improve the situation?

What measures were undertaken to make it easier for women to work?

Was the Government doing anything to close the gap between rich children going to private schools and poor children going to public schools?

An Expert wanted to know how the measures on the Amazigh language would actually be applied in practice.

Were homosexual relations a criminal offence in Morocco or not? Did a same-sex couple have equal protection as others?

On the Autonomy Referendum in Western Sahara, what would happen if a no-vote were to win, the Expert inquired. What would the strategy be and who would participate?

Another Expert asked if a person who had worked in the informal sector would have the right to social protection and pension.

An Expert commended the drop in the poverty rate.

As long as the law allowed polygamy, even if numbers were small, that was not acceptable, the Expert commented.

Was there free health care for the victims of domestic violence? Was special attention being paid to women with disabilities?

How many forced evictions affected those living in slums or shanty-towns? How many people were homeless in urban and rural areas?

An Expert referred to the 1,600 mile wall constructed along the borders which imprisoned the Sahrawi, and asked whether similarities could be drawn with the Israeli wall surrounding parts of Palestine.

Replies by the Delegation

The Government was in the process of trying to find a solution to the overcrowding in prisons, which included releasing prisoners who had committed petty crimes. All prisoners were guaranteed the right to talk to a doctor, and the number of doctors in prisons had been increased. Each prisoner had on average six visits to the doctor per year.

It was true that pre-school attendance was low. The availability of private schools meant more space in public schools, which in turn increased quality.

The delegation stressed that the Moroccan legislation considered any violence against women and children as a crime.
Abortion was authorized in three cases, namely if a woman’s health was in danger, in the case of rape, and when the fetus had a deformation.

The poverty threshold was improving thanks to a general improvement in the society, and the Government was dedicated to increasing it even more.

Slums had not been eliminated entirely, but there was no evacuation before housing was secured for those people. The rural exodus, on the other hand, was a major problem. Each year, 300,000 people left the rural and came to the urban areas.

The delegation stated that there was a trend towards eliminating polygamy. However, traditions were the hard realities of life. If a farmer, for example, could not have a male child with his wife, he would try to have a male child with another wife.

Morocco had expressed reservations to numerous points mentioned by the Committee regarding attainment of cultural rights. There was provision for all Moroccans to participate in cultural activities such as festivals and conferences. There was support for artists in the cultural field, including Sahrawi artists. In the South there was cultural infrastructure which was stronger than at the national level. The National Plan supported oral traditions and cultural diversity was encouraged.

On the informal sector, the delegation said that the Programme was aimed at bringing those working in the informal sector to move to the formal sector. In one year thousands of companies had moved from the informal to the formal sector.

Regarding the Amazigh language, it was explained that numerous studies had been done and school books were being produced. There had been 80 teachers in 2013 and 113 in 2014.

It was not easy to change mentalities, as there was a wave of Islamic fundamentalism. The fact that human rights were enshrined in the Constitution had to be appreciated. At the same time, cultural difficulties and tensions had to be recognized by the Committee.

The process of solving the dispute in the Western Sahara was under the aegis of the Secretary-General and his Special Envoy, and efforts had been ongoing for several years. Morocco had put forward the initiative on broad autonomy, which was considered by the Secretary-General and the international community as a solid solution. The aim was to have a political, mutually acceptable and lasting solution, which respected the right of law.

The comparison of the wall of Israel with the wall in Morocco was not acceptable. Morocco was chairing the only committee on the rights of the Palestinians. The Moroccan wall was a sand wall built for the purpose of defense, and not a separation wall. It had been built in uninhabited areas, where drug trafficking and illegal immigration was taking place, with the aim of bringing stability and security for the people in the Southern Areas.


Concluding Remarks

RODRIGO UPRIMNY, Committee Member and Country Rapporteur, said that it was a productive dialogue, with some constraints on fully detailed responses. Though not all questions had been answered, the report and the written answers provided had been very useful. He hoped that the concluding remarks would be widely distributed among the civil society and the citizens in Morocco, and that the next report would be submitted on time.

ABDELSLAM SEDDIKI, Minister of Employment and Social Affairs of Morocco, expressed his sincere thanks for the efforts and the time put forth into the report by the Committee. Morocco was very grateful for the Committee members’ patience. The delegation had not come to force its opinions, but to try to paint a picture of Morocco with all its strengths and weaknesses. There was still a lot to be done, and civil society organisations had helped in an important way in pointing out the areas where there was work to be done. The delegation made solid commitments on behalf of the Government of Morocco to persevere and guarantee the rights of citizens to enjoy economic, social and cultural rights to the fullest. The right to work for the young population of Morocco was of the highest priority.

WALEED SADI, Committee Chairperson, said that the Committee had taken note of Morocco’s commitment to human rights. Regarding how peoples’ sensitivities could be reconciled with the international norms, he said that it was a chronic problem, faced by many developing countries. He reminded the delegation that international standards had been adopted by the international community with the participation of all societies. Thus, they had to be respected. The argument that local sensitivities had to be taken into account did not hold. It was those local sensitivities that had to take into account the international standards, and not the other way around.


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ESC15/027E