Rabat – Morocco’s Association of Lawyers has addressed a message to Diego Garcia Sayan, the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, to raise concerns regarding the mandatory vaccine pass to access Moroccan courts.
A joint statement by the Ministry of Justice, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the Supreme Council of the Judiciary has recently stressed the need for Moroccan lawyers to have the vaccine pass to access courts across the country.
The joint statement indicates that starting from December 20, access to courts will be prohibited to lawyers who do not have a vaccination pass.
In their message, the association of lawyers asked Garcia Sayan to intervene with Morocco’s judicial authorities to cancel the vaccination pass requirement for access to courts.
The association challenges the legality and constitutionality of the decision, arguing that it violates individual rights and impedes “the independence of lawyers and their role.”
In the same letter, the body recalled that in accordance with the UN commitments of States, the government “must observe and respect the basic principles regarding the role of lawyers,” including by guaranteeing them the necessary conditions to fulfill their role “without restrictions, constraints, or improper interference.”
The association asked Garcia Sayan to remind Morocco of its “international obligations in human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
They concluded the letter by calling on the Special Rapporteur to intervene to change the decision “as it contradicts the constitutional principles and relevant international covenants.”
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