The United Nations Committee on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families has expressed its “concern” about reports of discriminatory treatment of migrant workers from sub-Saharan countries in Morocco.
The UN commission called on Morocco to “investigate these acts independently and expeditiously, and to expedite the publication of the report and prosecute those responsible, including the state employees involved.”
In its latest report, the same committee monitored what it said about “the practices of arresting and expelling these people to their countries of origin or to the eastern borders,” in addition to “the increase in discriminatory statements against these immigrants in the virtual and physical public space in Morocco during the year 2023.”
The committee called on the authorities to “take immediate measures to combat the social and racial stigmatization they claim to be subjected to, especially from sub-Saharan African countries,” calling on Morocco to carry out intensive awareness campaigns in this direction.
The United Nations Committee for the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families expressed its deep alarm at reports that at least 37 people were killed and dozens injured as a result of the actions of Moroccan security forces against migrants at the border checkpoint between Nador and Melilla in June 2022.
The Committee also expressed concern about allegations of violence, including the destruction of private property and food, against refugees and migrants living in informal “places” in and around Nador in the months leading up to the June events.
At least 23 migrants died in this tragedy, according to Moroccan authorities, when nearly 2,000 migrants tried to cross the high fence separating Melilla from the northern Moroccan border city of Nador.
Non-governmental organizations and independent experts commissioned by the United Nations Human Rights Council reported 37 deaths during this tragedy, the largest death toll ever at the border between Morocco and the occupied ports of Ceuta and Melilla, the only borders of the European Union on the African continent.
At the time, the aforementioned UN committee expressed its “grave concern about the death of at least 27 African migrants and the injury of others while trying to cross from Morocco to Spain on June 24 of last year, and called on both of them to” conduct an effective and independent investigation.
Bourita revealed, at the time, that his ministry “received an inquiry from the Moroccan Human Rights Council about the incident,” explaining by saying: “We submitted a detailed report to all Moroccan authorities in order to clarify the circumstances of the violent incident,” stressing the role of security cooperation between Spain and Morocco in combating criminal networks. for clandestine immigration.