Sexual assault charges used to shut down freedoms, according to rights groups

9 July 2021: Outspoken journalist Soulaimane Raissouni was sentenced to five years in prison for the alleged assault of an LGBTIQ activist. Rights groups consider this to be part of a wider trend of using sexual assault charges to suppress freedom of expression, pointing out that “this conviction stands in contrast to Morocco’s practice of sanctioning acts of sexual violence, particularly those targeting members of the LGBTIQ community.” According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, three journalists were in detention on 1 December 2020 on charges of alleged sex crimes. Reporters without Borders noted a number of irregularities relating to Raissouni’s trial.

See Mena Rights Group (July 2021), Committee to Protect Journalists here and here (July 2021), and Reporters without Borders (July 2021).