Western Sahara Tourism

---

Morocco has improved its human rights record in recent years. In 1993, Morocco ratified UN Conventions on torture, on discrimination against women and on child rights. In November 1993, Morocco’s first ever Minister for Human Rights was appointed.

In 2004 the Moroccan Human Rights Advisory Council (CCDH), set up the “Instance Equity and Reconciliation” (IER) to examine human rights violations in Morocco between 1956-1999. It reported to the King in December 2005. The IER report catalogued a number of human rights abuses, and identified over 9,000 people as eligible for compensation. It also made a number of recommendations to ensure that past abuses do not recur, including constitutional reforms and steps to end a culture of impunity in the Security Forces. The CCDH has been tasked to oversee the implementation of these recommendations. In March 2006 the government introduced specific anti-torture penal law.

On 25 January 2004, the government adopted a new Family Law which supports women's equality and grants them new rights eg equal divorce rights; right to be joint head of household etc.

There is a relatively free press. However, criticism of Islam, the monarchy or Morocco's presence in the Western Sahara is not tolerated.

Morocco's record in Western Sahara has improved in recent years, but more needs to be done to provide equality of opportunity for the people of the territory. Within Morocco itself, as well as in Western Sahara, in recent years marches and sit-ins have been broken up by police. Pro-independence demonstrations are a flash point for potentially violent confrontation.

---

Western Sahara Tourism