The plenary session of the Moroccan Parliament will meet tomorrow, Monday, in Rabat, to consider criticism of the MEPs, who have expressed concern about the deteriorating situation with freedom of the press in Morocco and have leveled accusations against the country of corruption.

“The two parts of parliament are organizing today a joint plenary meeting to discuss the latest positions of the European Parliament on Morocco,” their presidents said in a joint statement released yesterday, Saturday.

In a decision passed by an overwhelming majority in Strasbourg on Thursday, the European Parliament called on the Moroccan authorities to “respect freedom of speech and freedom of the media” and put an end to the “harassment of all journalists.”

The European Parliament also expressed “deep concern” over “accusations that the Moroccan authorities have bribed MEPs”.

The text of the deputies of the European Parliament was negatively perceived in Rabat.

The media close to the authorities were unanimous against the “fury of the enemies of the kingdom”, and the Foreign Ministry assured that Morocco “would not be scared or intimidated.”

In a statement released yesterday Saturday evening, the Supreme Council of the Judiciary (CSPJ), an advisory body, condemned “serious accusations and allegations that are detrimental to the independence of the (Moroccan) judiciary.”

“The European Parliament has given itself the right to judge the Moroccan judiciary in a flagrant and discriminatory manner,” the CSPJ said.

The Strasbourg decision was welcomed by Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders.

In Morocco, the National Organization for the Support of Prisoners of Public Opinion (INASDO) expressed its satisfaction with the text of the European Parliament condemning “violations and reprisals against independent journalists and the opposition, as well as their lawyers and their families.”

MEPs have opened a case against Omar Radi, a 36-year-old freelance journalist known for his criticism of the authorities, who was sentenced to six years in prison without parole for “rape” and “espionage,” charges he denies.

MEPs called for his temporary release, as well as the release of 54-year-old Tawfiq Bouasrin, a former publisher who has been in prison since 2018, and 50-year-old Suleiman Rasuni, a journalist sentenced in 2022 to five years in prison.

All three were convicted on sex charges that NGOs said were “fabricated” by the Moroccan authorities.

Source: APE-MPE, AFP.