Marrakech – King Mohammed VI has granted royal pardons to 19,673 individuals on the occasion of Throne Day, marking the 26th anniversary of his accession to the throne.
The Justice Ministry announced Tuesday that 2,415 people received standard pardons while an additional 17,258 convicts benefited from exceptional clemency measures.
Among those pardoned through the standard process, 2,239 are currently in detention. This includes 16 inmates who received pardons for their remaining prison terms, 2,218 who had their sentences reduced, and five who had life sentences commuted to fixed terms.
The royal pardon also extends to 176 individuals who are not in custody. This group includes 40 people who received full pardons or had remaining sentences canceled, 12 who had prison terms forgiven while maintaining fines, and 111 who were pardoned from fines only.
Another 12 individuals had both prison sentences and fines forgiven, while one person received a pardon for their fine and remaining prison term.
The exceptional clemency initiative involved carefully selected criteria to extend humanitarian relief to a broader group of convicts. This special measure resulted in 17,121 inmates receiving pardons for their remaining sentences and fines.
Additionally, 114 prisoners had life sentences reduced to fixed terms, and 23 death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment.
The announcement comes as Morocco marks a quarter-century of King Mohammed VI’s reform-driven reign. Since ascending to the throne in 1999, the monarch has overseen major developments in infrastructure, renewable energy, and industrial growth.
The monarch will address the nation in a speech tonight at 9 p.m., which will be broadcast on television and radio. As part of the Throne Day celebrations, he will preside over a reception tomorrow afternoon in M’diq.
On Thursday, the monarch will oversee a swearing-in ceremony for new military and civil service officers at the Royal Palace in Tetouan, followed by the traditional allegiance ceremony.
Under King Mohammed VI’s leadership, Morocco has expanded its high-speed rail network, increased highway infrastructure, and positioned itself as a regional hub for green energy.
His reign has also cemented the global appeal of the Moroccan position on Western Sahara, with major powers – led by the US, Spain, France, UK, and now Portugal – embracing the country’s Autonomy Plan as the most viable path to a lasting settlement of the decades-long territorial dispute.
