Brussels, 10 December 2012
European Union supports human rights promotion in Morocco
As part of its SPRING initiative, the European Commission today adopted a programme of EUR 2.8 million for Morocco to support the work of two key institutions in protecting and promoting human rights in the country, the National Human Rights Council (CNDH) and the Inter-ministerial Delegation for Human Rights (DIDH).
The Moroccan Government undertook to strengthen the rule of law and the protection of human rights, both EU priorities, in the Action Plan for the implementation of the ‘Advanced Status’ negotiated with the European Union. The hard work done since the late 1990s, which has notably seen Morocco subscribe to an increasing number of international conventions related to human rights, resulted in the adoption of a new Constitution in 2011. The Constitution enshrines a significant number of principles guaranteeing the protection of human rights and basic freedoms. It also formalises and enhances the role of certain institutions working to protect and promote human rights.
Štefan Füle, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, explained: "This new programme demonstrates the importance that the European Union attaches to human rights and the unreserved support that it intends to give the CNDH and the DIDH to help them fulfil their respective missions. The ensuing advances will bring Morocco significantly closer to the European Union’s core values in the field of human rights, democracy and the rule of law."
The CNDH and the DIDH will play a leading role in protecting and promoting human rights in the years ahead. The activities supported by the EU will include the exchange of experiences and good practices with the European agencies that have similar powers and a similar mandate.
Cooperation between Morocco and the European Union to consolidate democracy and respect for human rights is part of an established dynamic, which has found practical expression, for example, in support for the production of a national action plan for democracy and human rights and for monitoring the national reconciliation process implemented further to recommendations from the Equity and Reconciliation Commission.
For more information
Website of EuropeAid – Development and Cooperation DG:
European Neighbourhood Policy: