| WESTERN SAHARA Western Sahara Western Sahara Joined United Nations: N/A Human Rights as assured by their constitution Updated 16 February 2013 |
CONSTITUTION OF THE KINGDOM OF MOROCCO
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL PROVISIONS: BASIC PRINCIPLES
Article 1: Morocco shall have a democratic, social and constitutional Monarchy.
Article 2: Sovereignty shall be that of the People who shall exercise it directly, by means of referendum, or indirectly, through the
constitutional institutions.
Article 3: Political parties, unions, district councils and trade chambers shall participate in the organisation and representation of the
citizens. There shall be no one-party system.
Article 4: The law shall be the supreme expression of the will of the Nation. All shall abide by it. The law shall have no retroactive effect.
Article 5: All Moroccan citizens shall be equal before the law.
Article 6: Islam shall be the state religion. The state shall guarantee freedom of worship for all.
Article 7: The emblem of the Kingdom shall be a red flag with a five-pointed green star in the center. The motto of the Kingdom shall be:
GOD, THE COUNTRY, THE KING.
Article 8: Men and women shall enjoy equal political rights. Any citizen of age enjoying his or her civil and political rights shall be eligible
to vote.
Article 9: The constitution shall guarantee all citizens the following:
freedom of movement through, and of settlement in, all parts of the Kingdom;
freedom of opinion, of expression in all its forms, and of public gathering;
freedom of association, and the freedom to belong to any union or political group of their choice.
No limitation, except by law, shall be put to the exercise of such freedoms.
Article 10: No one shall be arrested, put into custody or penalised except under the circumstances and procedures prescribed by law. The
home shall be inviolable. Search warrant shall be issued and investigation ordered under the conditions and procedures prescribed by law.
Article 11: Secrecy of personal correspondence shall be preserved.
Article 12: Opportunities for employment in public offices and positions shall be uniformly open to all citizens.
Article 13: All citizens shall have equal rights in seeking education and employment.
Article 14: The right of strike shall be guaranteed. Conditions and ways of exercising such a right shall be defined by an organic law.
Article 15: The right of private property and free enterprise shall be guaranteed. The law shall put limitations to its extent and use if so
required by the socio-economic development planned for the Nation. No expropriation shall be ordered except under such circumstances
and provisions as prescribed by law.
Article 16: All citizens shall contribute to the defence of the Country.
Article 17: All citizens shall, according to their contributory power, bear public costs which shall be enacted and allocated only by the law,
and in the manner stipulated in the provisions of the present Constitution.
Article 18: All shall, in solidarity, bear the costs resulting from disasters suffered by the Nation.
Constitution of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic
Fourth Chapter: Rights and constitutional guarantees
Article 25: All citizens are equal before the law, both for protection and punishment.
Article 26 : No one shall be deprived of the enjoyment of his freedom except as provided by law.
Every citizen is innocent until his guilt is not confirmed.
No one shall be arrested or detained except in accordance with law.
No crime or punishment outside the law.
The length of pre-trial detention may not exceed 72 hours and can only be extended by order of the competent court in accordance with
the law.
Article 27: It is prohibited to attack on the modesty of the man or his honour or exercising with him any physical or moral violence or any
affront to his dignity.
The home of every citizen inviolable.
Its access requires an order of the competent judicial authority.
Article 28: Every citizen must be able to defend its rights before the competent judicial bodies.
Article 29: Freedom of expression, oral and written, is guaranteed and is exercised according to law.
Article 30: The right to create associations and political parties is recognized and guaranteed after the establishment of full sovereignty
over the territory.
Article 31: Until completion of national sovereignty, the Polisario Front remains the political framework that brings together politically and
mobilizes Saharans to express their aspirations and their legitimate right to self-determination and independence and to defend their unity
National and complete the building of the Saharawi sovereign state.
Article 32: Any citizen who meets the legal requirements has the right to elect and be elected.
Article 33: Every citizen has the right to run for public office according to the criteria defined by law.
Article 34: Private property is guaranteed, and is organized by the law.
Article 35: The right to education is guaranteed.
Education is free and compulsory.
The state organizes the institution of education accordance with the law school.
Article 36: Every citizen has the right to protection and health care.
The State shall ensure the prevention of diseases and epidemics, and fight them.
Article 37: Work is a right, a duty and an honour for every citizen.
Article 38: The State shall guarantee the protection of the mothers, children, the elderly and the disabled, by establishing institutions for
this purpose, by adopting a policy of social security and by enacting the necessary laws.
Article 39: The State shall promote housing for every citizen.
The State shall guarantee to parents (father and mother) of the martyrs, to their children who have not yet reached the age of majority, to
the war-wounded, prisoners at the enemy and to the victims of the liberation war material and moral rights to be set by law.
Article 41: The State is working on the advancement of women and their participation in political, economic, social and cultural life in the
building of society and the country's development.
Article 42: The State shall ensure constant improvement of the capacities of youth and its better job.
Article 43: Foreigners residing in the territory of the SADR have the right to practise their religion and to practice their customs and
traditions.
Article 44: The State shall guarantee the protection of the rights and property of foreigners living legally in the country.
Article 45: After the completion of national sovereignty, the market economy and freedom of initiative will be recognized.
Article 46: Foreign investment and public and private investments are organized by law.
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL PROVISIONS: BASIC PRINCIPLES
Article 1: Morocco shall have a democratic, social and constitutional Monarchy.
Article 2: Sovereignty shall be that of the People who shall exercise it directly, by means of referendum, or indirectly, through the
constitutional institutions.
Article 3: Political parties, unions, district councils and trade chambers shall participate in the organisation and representation of the
citizens. There shall be no one-party system.
Article 4: The law shall be the supreme expression of the will of the Nation. All shall abide by it. The law shall have no retroactive effect.
Article 5: All Moroccan citizens shall be equal before the law.
Article 6: Islam shall be the state religion. The state shall guarantee freedom of worship for all.
Article 7: The emblem of the Kingdom shall be a red flag with a five-pointed green star in the center. The motto of the Kingdom shall be:
GOD, THE COUNTRY, THE KING.
Article 8: Men and women shall enjoy equal political rights. Any citizen of age enjoying his or her civil and political rights shall be eligible
to vote.
Article 9: The constitution shall guarantee all citizens the following:
freedom of movement through, and of settlement in, all parts of the Kingdom;
freedom of opinion, of expression in all its forms, and of public gathering;
freedom of association, and the freedom to belong to any union or political group of their choice.
No limitation, except by law, shall be put to the exercise of such freedoms.
Article 10: No one shall be arrested, put into custody or penalised except under the circumstances and procedures prescribed by law. The
home shall be inviolable. Search warrant shall be issued and investigation ordered under the conditions and procedures prescribed by law.
Article 11: Secrecy of personal correspondence shall be preserved.
Article 12: Opportunities for employment in public offices and positions shall be uniformly open to all citizens.
Article 13: All citizens shall have equal rights in seeking education and employment.
Article 14: The right of strike shall be guaranteed. Conditions and ways of exercising such a right shall be defined by an organic law.
Article 15: The right of private property and free enterprise shall be guaranteed. The law shall put limitations to its extent and use if so
required by the socio-economic development planned for the Nation. No expropriation shall be ordered except under such circumstances
and provisions as prescribed by law.
Article 16: All citizens shall contribute to the defence of the Country.
Article 17: All citizens shall, according to their contributory power, bear public costs which shall be enacted and allocated only by the law,
and in the manner stipulated in the provisions of the present Constitution.
Article 18: All shall, in solidarity, bear the costs resulting from disasters suffered by the Nation.
Constitution of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic
Fourth Chapter: Rights and constitutional guarantees
Article 25: All citizens are equal before the law, both for protection and punishment.
Article 26 : No one shall be deprived of the enjoyment of his freedom except as provided by law.
Every citizen is innocent until his guilt is not confirmed.
No one shall be arrested or detained except in accordance with law.
No crime or punishment outside the law.
The length of pre-trial detention may not exceed 72 hours and can only be extended by order of the competent court in accordance with
the law.
Article 27: It is prohibited to attack on the modesty of the man or his honour or exercising with him any physical or moral violence or any
affront to his dignity.
The home of every citizen inviolable.
Its access requires an order of the competent judicial authority.
Article 28: Every citizen must be able to defend its rights before the competent judicial bodies.
Article 29: Freedom of expression, oral and written, is guaranteed and is exercised according to law.
Article 30: The right to create associations and political parties is recognized and guaranteed after the establishment of full sovereignty
over the territory.
Article 31: Until completion of national sovereignty, the Polisario Front remains the political framework that brings together politically and
mobilizes Saharans to express their aspirations and their legitimate right to self-determination and independence and to defend their unity
National and complete the building of the Saharawi sovereign state.
Article 32: Any citizen who meets the legal requirements has the right to elect and be elected.
Article 33: Every citizen has the right to run for public office according to the criteria defined by law.
Article 34: Private property is guaranteed, and is organized by the law.
Article 35: The right to education is guaranteed.
Education is free and compulsory.
The state organizes the institution of education accordance with the law school.
Article 36: Every citizen has the right to protection and health care.
The State shall ensure the prevention of diseases and epidemics, and fight them.
Article 37: Work is a right, a duty and an honour for every citizen.
Article 38: The State shall guarantee the protection of the mothers, children, the elderly and the disabled, by establishing institutions for
this purpose, by adopting a policy of social security and by enacting the necessary laws.
Article 39: The State shall promote housing for every citizen.
The State shall guarantee to parents (father and mother) of the martyrs, to their children who have not yet reached the age of majority, to
the war-wounded, prisoners at the enemy and to the victims of the liberation war material and moral rights to be set by law.
Article 41: The State is working on the advancement of women and their participation in political, economic, social and cultural life in the
building of society and the country's development.
Article 42: The State shall ensure constant improvement of the capacities of youth and its better job.
Article 43: Foreigners residing in the territory of the SADR have the right to practise their religion and to practice their customs and
traditions.
Article 44: The State shall guarantee the protection of the rights and property of foreigners living legally in the country.
Article 45: After the completion of national sovereignty, the market economy and freedom of initiative will be recognized.
Article 46: Foreign investment and public and private investments are organized by law.
Phoenicians colonized the region now know as Western Sahara in the 8th Century BCE but
all remnants of their culture and people vanish during the years of desertification. Nomadic
Berber tribes began to occupy the region with the introduction of the camel. Islam was
introduced in the 8th century. Almoravid of Morocco migrated into the region in the latter part
of the 11th century and Arabization began to take hold in the 13th Century. With European
colonization ramping up in the 19th century, France and Spain both launched claims to the
region. In 1858, Spain declared a protectorate over the coastal region which the named
Spanish Sahara. Rebellions by native Saharawi people kept the Spanish out of much of the
territory until 1910. Morocco's declaration of independence from France in 1958 led to their
reassertion of sovereignty over Western Sahara. The organization of armed rebellion by the
Saharawi Polisario Front in 1971 spawned a nationalist movement which led to the
abandonment of Western Sahara by Spain but claims by Morocco and Mauritania led to
conflict by between Morocco and the Polisario Front who received material assistance and a
base of operations from Algeria. A cease-fire was declared by Morocco and the Polisario
Front in 1991. In the ensuing years, negotiations have not settled the issue of sovereignty
though both the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front claim sovereignty. Human
rights are enumerated beginning with Chapter One (General Provisions: Basic Principles) of
the Constitution of the Kingdom of Morocco and Chapter Four (Rights and Constitutional
Guarantees) of the Constitution of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, conform with
the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights of which Morocco is a signatory but,
because of their as yet unrecognized status, Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic is not.
Both are detailed below For a full English translation Morocco's constitution, click here. For
a full English translation of Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic's Constitution, click here.
all remnants of their culture and people vanish during the years of desertification. Nomadic
Berber tribes began to occupy the region with the introduction of the camel. Islam was
introduced in the 8th century. Almoravid of Morocco migrated into the region in the latter part
of the 11th century and Arabization began to take hold in the 13th Century. With European
colonization ramping up in the 19th century, France and Spain both launched claims to the
region. In 1858, Spain declared a protectorate over the coastal region which the named
Spanish Sahara. Rebellions by native Saharawi people kept the Spanish out of much of the
territory until 1910. Morocco's declaration of independence from France in 1958 led to their
reassertion of sovereignty over Western Sahara. The organization of armed rebellion by the
Saharawi Polisario Front in 1971 spawned a nationalist movement which led to the
abandonment of Western Sahara by Spain but claims by Morocco and Mauritania led to
conflict by between Morocco and the Polisario Front who received material assistance and a
base of operations from Algeria. A cease-fire was declared by Morocco and the Polisario
Front in 1991. In the ensuing years, negotiations have not settled the issue of sovereignty
though both the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front claim sovereignty. Human
rights are enumerated beginning with Chapter One (General Provisions: Basic Principles) of
the Constitution of the Kingdom of Morocco and Chapter Four (Rights and Constitutional
Guarantees) of the Constitution of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, conform with
the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights of which Morocco is a signatory but,
because of their as yet unrecognized status, Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic is not.
Both are detailed below For a full English translation Morocco's constitution, click here. For
a full English translation of Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic's Constitution, click here.