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Morocco moved up 15 places in the 2024 World Press Freedom Index, released by Reporters Without Borders, jumping from 144th place in 2023 to 129th out of 180 countries. This progress is the highest in the region.
The organization attributed Morocco's improvement to the absence of new journalist arrests. However, Reporters Without Borders cautioned that «this cannot diminish the amount of repression, especially judicial, that continues against media professionals».
The Kingdom ranked fourth in the Maghreb, behind Mauritania (83rd), Tunisia (118th), and ahead of Algeria (139th). Libya ranked last at 143rd.
Efforts criticized despite press freedom rise
Reporters Without Borders expressed concerns about what it referred as ongoing press freedom issues in Morocco. The NGO reported that independent journalists would remain «under constant pressure» and that the authorities would be «trying to place the media at its command». The report even alleges that the current government, led by Aziz Akhannouch, would have «tightened control over the sector».
«The diversity of the Moroccan media is only a façade», the report claims. «The media do not reflect the diversity of political opinion in the country», Reporters Without Borders argued, claiming that independent media and journalists face significant pressure, and the right to information would be «crushed by a powerful propaganda and disinformation machine serving the political agenda of the government and its close allies».
The report further alleges that «faced with this pressure, the last independent media outlet in Moroccos, the daily Akhbar Al Yaoum, finally gave up and published its last issue in April 2021. Social media and news sites are the population’s main source of information».
«Journalists often resort to self-censorship because of the lack of legal safeguards for freedom of expression and of the press, the low level of judicial independence, and the frequency with which they are the targets of judicial proceedings», the organization pursued. The NGO also criticized the replacement of the National Press Council in 2023 with a temporary committee, calling it as «a step backwards for media self-regulation».
According to Reporters Without Borders, «journalists are often subjected to arrests without warrants and prolonged pre-trial detentions», in Morocco. The report claims that «fabricated morality cases, such as rape, human trafficking, adultery and illegal abortion, have been used against independent journalists».
«The ensuing trials have been accompanied by orchestrated smear campaigns in pro-government media», Reporters Without Borders declared. «In a joint petition in 2020, 110 journalists asked the National Press Council – the regulatory body that had the power to punish media outlets that violated the press law – to impose ‘disciplinary sanctions’ on ‘defamation journalism’», the NGO alleges.
Globally, Norway ranked first, followed by Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands. North Korea, Afghanistan, Syria and Eritrea occupied the bottom spots of the ranking.
