International Colloquium – Artificial Intelligence ethics: from emerging standards to perspectives of implementation

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH), in collaboration with its academic partners, organizes an international colloquium on “Artificial Intelligence (AI) ethics: from emerging standards to perspectives of implementation" on 22 and 23 July 2022 at the CNDH headquarters in Rabat, Morocco.

This colloquium is in line with the Rabat Declaration on “Artificial Intelligence and Digital Citizenship - For an Artificial Intelligence respecting Human Rights” which was adopted by national and international experts in December 2021.

It will gather international speakers from Africa, South America, North America and Europe to further discuss available standards and tools available to better assess the development of AI that respects and protects fundamental rights and freedoms.

It will also be an opportunity to deepen the debate, exchange new expertise and share best practices on the key challenges for implementing ethical AI, such as the upgrading the legal and organizational frameworks, the regulation of education, research, business and development sectors, the composition and prerogatives of control and monitoring bodies.

At this event, stakeholders will focus on the following themes: "AI ethics, global, regional and national initiatives", “AI at the service of Human Rights”, “Ethics of AI, state of initiatives in Morocco”, and “AI Ethical Codes, Discussion and Implementation Prospects”.

Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson will lead the opening session of this colloquium at 10 am.

Mr. Abdellatif Miraoui, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation, a representative of the Ministry Delegate in charge of Digital Transition and Administrative Reform, Mr. Ahmed Reda Chami, President of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (CESE), Mr. Omar Seghrouchni, President of the National Committee for Personal Data control and Protection (CNDP), and Mr. Karim Hendili, Acting Director of the UNESCO Office for the Maghreb Region,  will take part in this event.

This colloquium is organized in collaboration with UNESCO, Digital Development Agency, National Center for Scientific and Technical Research, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Mohammed I University of Oujda, Ibn Tofaïl University of Kenitra, Abdelmalek Essaâdi University of Tetouan, Cadi Ayyad University of Marrakech, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University of Rabat-Benguerir, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University of Fez, Euro-Mediterranean University of Fez, AI Movement, and Policy Center for the New South.

The opening session will be live on the CNDH Facebook page: CNDHMaroc.ar

Colloquium to follow via registration upon : https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0uc-ysrD8iH9aLqBHe23-E90jaLEvGIN21

(REPORT) UNPRECEDENTED CONFRONTATIONS AT THE MELILLA CROSSING: PRELIMINARY REPORT OF CNDH'S FACT-FINDING COMMISSION

On June 24, 2022, some 2000 migrants attempted a massive crossing to Melilia, mainly via the Barrio Chino crossing area (Nador-Melilia). The tragic incident was unprecedented in nature, tactics, scope, number of migrants attempting a mass crossing, number of victims, casualties, etc.
23 migrants died and 217 people were injured, including 140 law enforcement officers and 77 migrants. Law enforcement officers used tear gas and other nonlethal weapons to block the massive attempts. Migrants used stones, sticks and sharp tools to storm the crossing station and breach the fence, separating Nador and Melilia.
The CNHD reiterates hereby its profound sadness at the loss of life and the reported injuries and its deepest condolences to the families.
Immediately following the tragic incident, the Chairperson of Morocco’s National Human Rights Institution (le Conseil national des droits de l’Homme - CNDH) commissioned a fact-finding mission to visit the city of Nador and the neighbouring districts and to meet with all stakeholders, including authorities, civil society, and migrants.
The fact-finding mission gathered facts and information regarding the tragic and violent incident.
In a press conference, held on July 13th, the CNDH published the preliminary findings and conclusions of its fact-finding mission, entitled: Unprecedented Confrontations at the Melilla Crossing: Preliminary Report of CNDH's Fact-Finding Commission

Round table: For a legislative and institutional framework hosting the effectiveness of the right to environment

On Wednesday 6 July 2022, the National Human Rights Council (CNDH) will organize a round table entitled: For a legislative and institutional framework hosting the effectiveness of the right to the environment, at 9:30 am, at its headquarters in Rabat, Morocco.

Mrs. Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson, will deliver an opening statement at this round table. Institutional actors, university professors, experts and civil society organizations working on the environment will take part in this event.

Mr. Mustapha Merizaq, Coordinator of the Standing Committee on Promoting Human Rights Culture and Democratic Construction at the CNDH, will moderate this round table.

This event aims to identify the constraints and challenges related to the legislative and institutional framework of the right to the environment. It intends to identify the entrances to actions for a legal and institutional framework hosting the effectiveness of the right to a healthy, sound and sustainable environment.

It also plans to approach major challenges posed by the large number of institutional stakeholders working on the environment, at the levels of coordination and ensuring convergence of strategies, policies and public programs related to the environment and sustainable development. Participants will also address the importance of implementing the pivotal role of National Institutions within the institutional system, such as the National Council for the Environment or the Supreme Council for Water and Climate.

This round table will be an opportunity to shed light on issues related to the right to the environment. Participants will address several axes: The right to a healthy, sound and sustainable environment; Concepts, normative frameworks and challenges of harmonization; Problems of convergence and coordination in national policies aiming to preserve the environment; The national legislative and institutional arsenal and the challenges to preserve the environment; Guarantees of means of litigation and redress... Reading law and jurisprudence.

CNDH Regional Commission in Tangier organizes Round Table on the Practical Guide on Managing Hunger Strikes in Prisons

The Regional Human Rights Commission of the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region (CRDH) will organize a Round table on the Practical Guide on managing Hunger Strikes in Prisons, on Tuesday 5 July 2022, at 4:00 pm in Tangier, Morocco.

This event is part of the implementation of the CRDH mandate and its missions related to visiting places of detention, monitoring the conditions and treatment of prisoners, and receiving their or their families’ complaints. The CRDH also holds hearing sessions with prisoners or their families whenever necessary and conducts mediation in cases of hunger strikes to preserve the right to life as the fundamental human right following Chapter 20 of the Moroccan Constitution.

This Round Table will be an opportunity to shed light on the contents, themes and objectives of this Practical Guide aiming at establishing a unified measure for hunger strikes in prisons in Morocco.  Participants will discuss setting a guiding framework for possible interventions and defining responsibilities of the relevant authorities to ensure the protection of prisoners’ rights, human dignity and physical and psychological integrity, consistent with the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Malta Declaration and the Tokyo Declaration.

Directors of prisons and medical staff working in prisons, judges, attorneys, directors of regional health hospitals, media professionals and researchers in this field will debate this issue and share insights on the effective improvement of practices in prisons to guarantee it as a space for reform and reintegration into society.

The practical guide on managing hunger strikes in prisons was published in July 2021. It was elaborated by a Commission composed of the Ministry of Health, National Human Rights Council (CNDH), Presidency of the Public Prosecution, and General Delegation for Prisons Administration and Reintegration, in partnership with the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Draa-Tafilalet Region: Seminar on the effectiveness of the right of persons with disabilities to access justice

The Regional Human Rights Commission of the Draa-Tafilalet Region (CRDH), in coordination with the Court of First Instance of Midelt (a city in Morocco), will organize a seminar on the effectiveness of the right of persons with disabilities to access justice, on Wednesday 29 June 2022, at 10:30 am at the Court of First Instance in Midelt, Morocco.

The organization of this seminar is part of the implementation of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH) strategy based on the effectiveness of human rights and the CRDH 2022 action program.

This seminar aims to start a public debate on the most significant issues facing the implementation of the right of persons with disabilities to access justice and fair trial.

Representatives of government, the National Mechanism for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, civil society, academics, jurists, media professionals and those interested in this theme will address these issues.

They will focus mainly on: The Public Prosecution's Role in Protecting Persons with Disabilities; Judiciary and effectiveness of the right of access to justice for persons with disabilities; The role of the National Mechanism for the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the effectiveness of the right to access justice; The role of social welfare institutions in protecting persons with disabilities, etc.

Casablanca-Settat: Round table on the "Accumulation of Penalties: Law and Practice"

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) will organize a round table on the topic "Accumulation of Penalties: Law and Practice", on Wednesday 29 June 2022, at the CNDH Regional Commission in Casablanca, Morocco, at 9.00 am.

This round table is part of the Protection Meetings Program coordinated by the CNDH Standing Committee on Protecting and Monitoring Human Rights Violations.

It aims to contribute to the public debate on the procedure for the accumulation of penalties as a legal issue that raises legal interpretation and practice problems.

This round table also intends to present and discuss all legal, judicial and jurisprudence readings about the accumulation of penalties as an important measure of the criminal procedure that seeks to achieve justice, equality and parity and ensure all conditions for a fair trial.

This round table will be an opportunity to shed light on the perspectives of the various relevant stakeholders.

Representatives of the CNDH, the Ministry of Justice, the Presidency of the Public Prosecution, the General Delegate for Prison Administration and Reintegration, lawyers and academics will participate in this event.

Tragic incident at Nador and Melilia crossing: Morocco’s National Human Rights Institution establishes a fact-finding commission

Rabat, June 27, 2022
Commissioned by the Chairperson of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), a CNDH Commission is carrying out a fact-finding mission in the city of Nador and neibouring districts. 

The Commission will gather facts and reliable information regarding the tragic and violent incident, as hundreds of migrants attempted a mass crossing. 23 people died and 216 were injured, including 140 law enforcement officers, according to latest reports.

“On behalf of all members and staff, I express our profound sadness at the loss of life and reported injuries. Our deepest condolences to the families”, said Amina Bouayach, CNDH Chairperson.

“We have established a fact-finding commission that will meet with all stakeholders. We will share the findings and conclusions with the public and the stakeholders, as soon as possible”, She added.  

Morocco’s NHRI initially followed on the tragic incident and gathered information, through its regional human rights commission in the Oriental Region. The Commission checked and verified information regarding the huge number of migrants attempting the mass crossings, severity of violence and the reported loss of life and injuries.

The CNDH also examined shared photos and videos, noting, once again, that many had nothing to do with the attempted crossings, including disinformation and misinformation regarding the mass crossing.

The fact-finding commission is coordinated by the Chairperson of the Regional Human Rights Commission in the Oriental Region. It includes the Chairperson of the Regional Human Rights Commission in Souss-Massa, CNDH Human Rights Protection and Monitoring Director, and two members of the Regional Human Rights Commission in the Oriental Region, including a physician.

Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region: Round Table entitled “Children in difficult conditions, what protection?”

On Friday 24 June 2022 in Tanger, Morocco, the Regional Human Rights Commission of the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region (CRDH) organized a round table entitled: “Children in difficult conditions in the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region: What protection?”.

Participants addressed the most significant issues related to children exposed to various types of danger, abuse, violence and sexual exploitation (children in street situations, children with disabilities, children in conflict with the law, children placed in social welfare institutions, children migrant in irregular situations and unaccompanied, children victims of early marriage and school dropout, etc.).

At the opening session of this meeting, Mrs. Soulma Taoud, CRDH President, stressed the importance of ensuring that the children shall grow up in a sound family environment as stipulated in the Moroccan Constitution in Chapter 32 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

She also emphasized the fundamental and essential role of the State in ensuring the social and economic rights of the family to ensure its unity and stability.

Mrs. Taoud underlined the roles of the CRDH in protecting children, including monitoring violations through the media, receiving communications on violations from civil society/CRDH members, receiving complaints, and addressing them in cooperation with the relevant institutions.

Within the same context, participants noted the absence of social welfare institutions respecting international standards. They called for implementing the principle of non-impunity for all those proven responsible for the exploitation of children. They also recommended promoting the education of children with disabilities and adopting alternative punishments instead of intensive placement in institutions of deprivation of liberty, etc.

Mr. Hicham Maich, Deputy Public Prosecutor at the Court of Appeal in Tanger, Mrs. Aicha Khidani, Mrs. Fatima Zahra Moussaoui, Director of the Child Protection Center in Tanger, and Mr. Tayeb Bouchiba, Coordinator of Matqisch Weldi Organization, took part in this meeting.

Stakeholders representing the judiciary and government working on children issues (education, health, youth and sports... ), researchers, civil society associations, and media professionals also contributed to this public debate.

Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima Region: Round Table entitled “Children in difficult conditions, what protection?”

The CNDH Regional Commission in Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima (CRDH) will organize a round table entitled “Children in difficult conditions, what protection?” on Friday 24 June 2022 at 4 pm in Tanger, Morocco.

It is part of the CRDH mandate related to protecting and promoting human rights and the implementation of the annual action plan related to children.

This round table aims to open public discussion and collective thinking about the fundamental issues affecting children in difficult situations (children in street situations, children with disabilities, children in conflict with the law, children placed in social welfare institutions, children migrating in irregular situations and unaccompanied, children victims of early marriage and school dropout, etc.).

It also intends to address the accountability of public policies and their effectiveness in ensuring the protection of the child, as stipulated in the Constitution and the Convention on the Rights of the Child and tackle their consistency with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

This round table will be an opportunity to shed light on the challenges faced to enable all children to enjoy their economic, social and cultural rights, such as education, health, adequate housing, and others.

Stakeholders will also share insights on possible solutions to reduce obstacles (such as school dropout, sexual exploitation, violence and exploitation for begging, hard and early work...) aiming to provide for effective protection of the child to raise him/her as an active, productive citizen and a contributor to comprehensive and sustainable development.

Several actors representing the judiciary, government, professors, civil society associations, media professionals, etc. will discuss these issues from human rights, legal and social perspectives.

Within the framework of its mandate, the CRDH receives complaints related to human rights violations, including violations of children's rights. It spontaneously handles cases of violations communicated in the region.
CRDH contact: +212 6 66 17 56 11

Protection Thursday: National Strategy for Migration and Asylum and the Necessity of Harmonization Legal Framework

The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) will organize its second seminar on the "National Strategy for Migration and Asylum and the Necessity of Harmonization of the Legal Framework", online, on Thursday 23 June 2022, at 6:30 pm.

The proceedings of this seminar will be live on the CNDH’s Facebook page.

It is part of the CNDH’s monthly program "Protection Thursday", and the continuation of its online seminars on "Protecting human rights within the context of migration”.

This interactive event aims to assess the extent to which national legislation is harmonized with Morocco's international commitment to protecting foreigners’ rights. It will be an opportunity to address issues related to the adoption of the Law on asylum and the Law on the entry and residency of foreigners in Morocco.

Mr. Abderrafie Hamdi, Head of the CNDH Protection and Monitoring Directorate will moderate this seminar.

Mr. Mahjoub El Hiba, CNDH member and expert in the UN Human Rights Committee, Mrs. Salma Agnaou, in charge of legal affairs at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Rabat, Morocco, Mrs. Sara Soujar, in charge of advocating for the rights of foreigners in the Association Antiracist Group for Support and Defense of Foreigners and Migrants (GADEM).

On Thursday 26 May 2022, the CNDH organized the first seminar within the framework of this program. Stakeholders discussed the outcome of the national strategy for migration and asylum, considering that international organizations, representatives of governments, associations and researchers had converged and crossed attitudes on this matter.

Since 2013, Morocco has engaged in a new humanitarian, comprehensive and homogeneous migration and asylum policy. About a decade ago, several action programs were implemented to support foreigners social and economic integration, update the legislative and institutional framework, and enhance respect for human rights in managing migration.