CNDH shares its experience with the National Human Rights Commission of the Republic of Mali

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) will meet with the National Human Rights Commission of the Republic of Mali delegation from 11 to 14 October 2022 to share its experiences and expertise as a national institution for protecting and promoting human rights.

The meeting will be launched by Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson, and Mr. Aguibou BOUARE, President of the National Human Rights Commission in Mali. It is part of continuing and strengthening the existing cooperation between the CNDH and the National Human rights Institution (NHRI) of Mali. It is organized within the framework of sharing the CNDH expertise and experience with other NHRIs members of the Network of African National Human Rights Institutions (NANHRI).

The program of this visit includes meetings with the CNDH staff to share the CNDH missions and ways of working in various fields with the Malian delegation.

It will focus mainly on the promotion and protection of human rights, receiving and handling complaints, monitoring and investigation mechanisms, preparing reports, interaction with international human rights mechanisms, reading in recommendations of the Sub-Committee for Accreditation (SCA) of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) and their implementation, and the CNDH communication tools, etc.

Special emphasis will be put on the CNDH experience as a national institution hosting the national mechanism for the prevention of torture (NPM), particularly relating the methodology and techniques of visiting places of deprivation of liberty, conducting interviews, etc.

Malian delegation Members will visit the CNDH Regional Commission in the Casablanca-Settat Region to learn more about the CNDH protecting and promoting actions conducted regionally. They will also meet with the House of Councillors Representatives.

Draa-Tafilalet Region/Casablanca-Settat Region: Meetings on the Effectiveness of the Right to Health, Challenges and Ways to its Strengthening

The Regional Human Rights Commissions of the Draa-Tafilalet Region and the Casablanca-Settat Region (CRDHs), in coordination with the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection in each region, will organize regional meetings to address the contents of the thematic report published by the National Human Rights Council (CNDH) on "The Effectiveness of the Right to Health in Morocco... Challenges and Ways to its Strengthening".

Meetings will be held, successively, on 4 and 13 October 2022, at 9 am, in Errachidia and Casablanca, Morocco.

They are part of the CNDH and its Regional Commissions mandate related to contributing to public policy assessment.

They are also part of regional meetings related to presenting the CNDH report to raise awareness of the inequalities and difficulties in accessing the right to health. These regional meetings also intend to suggest possible ways to overcome challenges, not only based on legal texts guaranteeing the right to health but also by examining the difficulties associated with the implicit determinants of the right to health, particularly the economic, social, cultural and environmental obstacles.

These meetings aim to study ways of implementing the recommendations of this report in the Draa-Tafilalet region and the Casablanca-Settat Region, particularly with regard to the management of human resources in the health sector.

Experts and persons interested in the health sector, including doctors, nurses, media professionals, elected officials, human rights defenders, trade unions and civil society activists, will participate in this event.

On the sidelines of the CNDH Regional Commission in Casablanca-Settat meeting, a partnership agreement will be signed with the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection. It aims to strengthen cooperation and coordination between the two institutions to protect and promote the right to health.

The CNDH launched a public debate on the effectiveness of the right to health in Morocco on 14 October 2020, aiming to advocate for the development of an integrated, inclusive and coherent national health strategy to ensure the right to health for all.

The CNDH thematic report on the effectiveness of the Right to Health, published on Friday 22 April 2022, contained more than 100 recommendations to enhance the effective access to the right to health, including recommendations related to legislation, governance and strengthening the preventive approach in the health sector, etc.

Seminar on the “Inclusion of foreigners in the social security project: principles and challenges of implementation”

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) is organizing, in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Morocco (HCR Morocco) and the International Organization for Migration Morocco (IOM Morocco), a seminar on the "Inclusion of foreigners in the social security project: Principles and challenges of implementation", on 29 September 2022, at 9:30 am, at the headquarters of the CNDH in Rabat, Morocco.

This seminar is part of the continuity of the CNDH actions conducted since 2019, with the support of the UNHCR, on the "Universal medical coverage: issues and challenges of the inclusion of foreigners". It aims at following the recommendations issued and taking into account the needs of foreigners within the framework of the Royal project for social security mainstreaming.

Representatives of ministerial departments, international organizations, researchers and civil society actors, will have the opportunity to initiate discussions on foreigners’ access to social security in the context of the ongoing reform.

The program of this seminar will focus on presenting the guiding principles, objectives, and tools for implementing the reform of the social security system; identifying relevant experiences nationally and internationally, as well as persistent challenges and elaborate recommendations supporting the implementation of the inclusion of foreigners in the social security system.

Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson, Mr. François Reybet-Degat, UNHCR Morocco Representative and Mrs. Laura Palatini, IOM Morocco Head of Mission will take part in the opening session of this event.

Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region: Training Session for Journalists on the “Implementation of the Human Rights Approach in Media”

The Regional Human Rights Commission of the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region (CRDH), in partnership with the Higher Institute of Information and Communication (ISIC), the National Union of the Moroccan Press (NUMP) and the House of Press in Tanger, will organize a training workshop for 25 journalists on the “Implementation of the human rights approach in media”, on Thursday 29 September 2022, at 09.00 am at the House of the Press in Tanger, Morocco.

This training session is part of the CRDH mandate and the implementation of its annual action plan in its part related to the promotion of human rights culture. The organization of this event reflects the importance of media to the CNDH as a partner in promoting human rights in society, as stipulated in the United Nations Declaration in the Field of Education and Training, adopted by the General Assembly In December 2011, etc.

This training session aims to strengthen the capacities of journalists working in written, audio-visual and electronic media in the region.

Professor Abdellatif Ben Safiya, ISIC Director and Professor Abdellah Bakkali, President of the National Union of the Moroccan Press, will facilitate this training session.

The proceedings of this training session will be an occasion to shed light on the conceptual framework of the human rights system and the most important international conventions. Stakeholders will also focus on topics related to discrimination, gender, disability, childhood and migration, to enhance journalists’ capacities to address the current human rights issues professionally, monitor and combat violations from a human rights perspective.

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) recommended in its 2021 Annual Report to encourage media attention toward the rights of vulnerable groups. It also called on strengthening the professional and ethical treatment of these issues to discuss them widely in public debate and encourage media and journalistic contribution to promoting human rights culture.

Draa-Tafilalet Region: CRDH participates in the Fifth Chapter of the Regional Book Fair in Tinghir

The Regional Human Rights Commission of the Draa-Tafilalet Region (CRDH) takes part in the Regional Book Fair from 28 September to 4 October 2022 in Sidi Maskour Square in Tinghir, Morocco.

The event is organized by the Regional Directorate for the Culture in partnership with the Tinghir Prefecture and in coordination with the Regional Directorate of National Education, Preschool and Sports in Tinghir, Morocco.

The participation of the CRDH in this Book Fair is part of its program related to strengthening communication with its surroundings and promoting human rights culture regionally, as well as introducing the roles of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), its National Mechanisms, CRDHs, programs and projects.

The CNDH Regional Commission’s participation will be an opportunity to establish a pavilion to present the CNDH various publications, including reports and thematic studies, books related to heritage, history and memory, in addition to books on the human rights journey of famous Moroccan personalities.

CRDH Staff and members will also introduce the CNDH and its regional Commission actions to the visitors. They will also facilitate an awareness-raising workshop on the Convention on the Rights of the Child for students on Saturday 1 October 2022.

Training session for DGSN officials in charge of places of deprivation of liberty

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) and the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) are organizing a training session aiming at strengthening and developing the capacities of DGSN officials in charge of places of deprivation of liberty, from 26 to 30 September 2022 at the Rabat - Driss Benzekri Institute for Human Rights, Morocco.

The organization of this training session is part of the implementation of the Partnership Agreement and institutional cooperation to promote human rights culture within the police functions, signed on 14 September 2022, between Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson, and Mr. Abdellatif Hammouchi, DGSN Head.

The program of this session will be facilitated by the CNDH and DGSN experts and staff. Stakeholders will mainly focus on: Human rights, principles and practices; Rights of persons placed in custody; Monitoring, Prevention and Redress Bodies, etc.

The above-mentioned framework agreement aims at developing joint actions associating both institutions to promote human rights culture in training curricula and other functional police practices. It intends to make it a reference and framing guide for the national security officials in charge of law enforcement. This agreement also supports the efforts made by the DGSN to promote professional practices and field interventions based on national and international human rights standards.

This partnership agreement reflects the determination and firm will of the DGSN and CNDH to enhance cooperation in several fields of training (fundamental, continuous and specialized), as well as to consolidate human rights achievements in Morocco.

CNDH launches debates panels on the effectiveness of Human Rights and Freedoms "The human right to water is a prerequisite for the realization of other human rights"

"The human right to water is a prerequisite for the realization of other human rights"

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) will organize the first chapter of the "Human Rights Agora" project. It is a series of debates on the effectiveness of rights and freedoms.

This round table will focus on "The human right to water is a prerequisite for the realization of other human rights" and will be held on Tuesday 27 September 2022 at 3:00 pm at the Rabat Institute - Driss Benzekri - for Human Rights, Morocco.

The organization of this event comes within an international and national context marked by the rapid developments of several phenomena related to climate change and their repercussions on human rights. In addition, the CNDH is following with great concern the problem of the steady decline of the national water reserves and the threats it entails to social stability and its consequences on human rights.

The CNDH seeks to contribute to identifying the main issues related to the management of water resources. It also plans to propose solutions (summaries and recommendations) from the "right to water" perspective in association with other rights, foremost of which is the right to life, and the right of future generations for this vital wealth.

Participants will focus on how to deal with drought as a structural factor in development choices; incorporating the concept of water cost into economic activity; considering the right to water as the core of food security; and improvement of water sector governance as an entry point for managing water stress, etc.

Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson, will open the proceedings of this event.

Experts in water and climate, government sectors, civil society and university professors will take part to these debates.

Fifth Ordinary Meeting of the CNDH Regional Commission in Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra

The Regional Human Rights Commission of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra Region (CRDH) holds its fifth regular meeting following the requirements of law No. 76-15 relating to the organization of the National Human Rights Council (CRDH) and Article 36 of its Rules of Procedures, on Thursday 22 September 2022, in the Municipal Council of Tarfaya (A province in Morocco), starting at 2:30 pm.
The agenda of this meeting includes the presentation and discussion of the 2022 semi-annual report, and the CRDH annual action plan for 2023 and its approval.

The CRDH of the Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra Region was installed on 8 September 2020. It consists of a Standing Committee on protecting human rights, a Standing Committee on promoting human rights, and a Standing Committee on evaluating and monitoring the effectiveness of human rights in regional policies and programs.

The CRDH covers the provinces of Laâyoune, Tarfaya, Boujdour and Es-Smara. It composes of 21 members proposed by the regional representative bodies of judges, lawyers, the Higher Ulema Council, doctors, professional journalists and civil society associations, in addition to actors working on the protection and promotion of human rights.

CNDH and DGSN signed partnership agreement to promote human rights culture within police function

Mrs. Amina Bouayach, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), and Mr. Abdellatif Hammouchi, Head of the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN), signed, on Wednesday 14 September 2022, in Rabat, Morocco, a framework agreement for partnership and institutional cooperation to promote human rights culture within the police function.

This agreement reflects the determination and firm will of the DGSN and the CNDH to enhance cooperation in several fields of training (fundamental, continuous and specialized), as well as to consolidate human rights achievements in Morocco.

This agreement lays the foundations for sustainable institutional cooperation. It aims to develop joint actions associating both institutions to promote human rights culture in police internships and training curricula. Besides, it intends to make it a reference and a framing guide for the national police officials in charge of law enforcement. The contents of this document also support the efforts made by the DGSN to promote professional practices and field interventions based on national and international human rights standards.

This cooperation is open to all promising future initiatives and projects. It includes the organization of training sessions to enhance human rights knowledge for DGSN staff and employees while taking into account of expertise and instruments related to rights and freedoms and institutional actions. It also involves the human rights dimension as the police pillar in training curricula and other functional practices.

In the implementation of this agreement, the CNDH and the DGSN will organize an international symposium on standards and practices related to the prevention of torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment during arrest, interrogation and placement in custody. National and international stakeholders representing the human rights UN mechanisms will contribute in this event. It will be an opportunity to launch an integrated training program that includes training workshops for DGSN officials in charge of guarding places of detention and deprivation of liberty.

Marrakech-Safi Region: Strengthening capacities of territorial collectivities on participatory democracy and citizen participation

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) is organizing a practical training session to enhance the capacities of actors in territorial collectivities on participatory democracy and citizen participation, from 26 to 28 July 2022, in Marrakech, Morocco.

This practical training session is part of the partnership agreement signed between the CNDH and the Marrakech-Safi Region Council. It aims at developing the capacities of stakeholders on human rights. It also intends to support territorial collectivities in this region to take inclusive measures and policies based on a human rights approach.

This training session will be organized with the support of the UNESCO office in Rabat. It is a CNDH partner in several actions including workshops on the prevention of discrimination and the promotion of freedoms and new generations of human rights. Within this context, both parties signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation last June.

The program of this training session includes practical workshops and situational studies. It aims to support the capacities of territorial actors to implement the appropriate participatory approach and evaluate its effectiveness.

This session will be a space for sharing experiences and best practices. Around 30 stakeholders will interact and participate in this training session, including elected officials, employees of several territorial collectivities in the Marrakech-Safi region, representatives of NGOs and CRDH members.