Based on dozens of interviews, this report documents human rights abuses inflicted by Moroccan government forces against civilians during the dismantlement of the Gdaim Izik protest camp in November 2010, and in its aftermath.

RFK Center report >>

Related content: http://www.rfkcenter.org/award/2008

With the ouster of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali and Hosni Mubarak, the Arab world has erupted in popular protests in favor of democracy and dignity. Morocco, long considered one of the most stable Arab countries, is not immune to this regional trend. Inspired by the cases of Tunisia and Egypt, a group of young activists are using social media to spread the word

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By Alejandro López
3 February 2011
As millions of people march in Egyptian cities and protests continue in Tunisia after the ouster of former dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the Moroccan monarchy fears that it may be the next to face mass protests.
According to reports on Spanish public television, Moroccan troops are being sent towards major Moroccan cities, including Casablanca and Rabat, from their bases in the Western Sahara. The Moroccan embassy in Madrid denounced this report.
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February 2011 Update on Western Sahara >>

Suzanne Scholte, president of the US-Western Sahara Foundation has written an article on Wikileaks cables from the US embassy in Rabat which show Polisario Front are the good guys in this conflict, she says. See:
http://dailycaller.com/2010/12/20/wikileaks-documents-support-polisarios-goal-of-self-determination/

A Mixed Picture of Human Rights in the Kingdom

Human Rights Watch’s World Report 2011, please visit:
https://admin.hrw.org/world-report-2011(New York, January 24, 2011) – Morocco imprisoned government critics and dissidents for their peaceful expression during 2010, despite the image it enjoys as a regional leader on human rights, Human Rights Watch said today in releasing its World Report 2011.

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Daniel F. Rivera
Published in The Majalla,  Monday 24 January 2011
Morocco’s November assault on the Saharan refugee camp known as Gadaym Izik marked a new phase in the US and EU policies toward Morocco. As the conflict in the Western Sahara moves to the forefront of Morocco’s priorities, international opinion has become more critical of Rabat than ever.

THE RFK CENTER FINDS EVIDENCE OF ESCALATING ABUSE, TORTURE, AND ARBITRARY IMPRISONMENT IN WESTERN SAHARA
1/19/2011

WASHINGTON (January 18, 2011) – Torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, failure to follow criminal procedures, and repression of civilians by Moroccan government forces are all too common in Western Sahara, according to the findings of a recent visit to El Aaiun by the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights.

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Morocco/Western Sahara: Rights Trampled: Protests, violence and repression in Western Sahara
Violent confrontations broke out in November 2010 when Moroccan security forces sought to forcibly remove people from a tented “protest camp.”

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