Moroccan Constitutional Referendum, 2011

Moroccan King Mohamed VI at his inauguration in 2007

A Constitutional Referendum was on the ballot in Morocco on July 1, 2011. The referendum, submitted by the King of Morocco, sought to reform the Moroccan state constitution by separating powers in the government, guaranteeing equal rights for men and women, judicial independence and regionalization. The referendum was approved with 98% of votes in favor.

Reforms proposed

A list of the reforms proposed in the referendum included:

• Requiring the king to select a prime minister from the party that wins the most seats in parliament;
• Removing any reference of the king as "sacred" from the Moroccan constitution, but allowing the king to be referred to as "inviolable";
• Providing that the prime minister, rather than the king, be the head of the government;
• Giving the prime minister the power to dissolve the lower house of parliament;
• Providing that the prime minister preside over the Government Council, the body responsible for preparing policy before presenting it to the cabinet;
• Giving parliament more oversight of civil rights, electoral and nationality issues;
• Guaranteeing women civic and social equality with men in addition to political equality;
• Designating the Berber language as an official state language along with Arabic; and
• Providing that the King be in control of the security and foreign policy of the country.

Support

Official political parties in the country all expressed support for the reforms, and there were weekly demonstrations in favor of the reforms. Both the U.N. Secretary General at the time and the Arab League's outgoing secretary general supported the reforms as important steps in further democratic changes. The head of the European Union at the time also supported the reforms stating that the EU was in clear support of further commitments to democracy and human rights in the country. The U.S Secretary of State said that the King's reforms placed a good model for other countries in the area. Leading up to the election there were confrontations between protestors in favor of the referendum and those opposed, and the Unified Socialist Party reported misuses of Mosques being used to give sermons in support of the referendums.

Opposition

Those opposed argued that the reforms do not go far enough, leaving the king with absolute power, as the king would maintain control over religion, international relations, and security. It was also argued that the proposed reforms were made by the King and his elected advisers without giving the public a means to voice their input. Opponents said that representatives from political parties, labor unions and non-government organizations were consulted by the King and advisers, but not allowed to discuss the proposed changes or offer input. The Islamist Justice and Charity group called for a boycott of the election rather than just casting a 'no' vote; arguing that the reforms were not made in a democratic manner and that the country would still see demonstrations protesting the vote.

Background

After protesting took place in areas of Tunisia and Egypt, Moroccan demonstrators also took to the streets to demand political and social reforms from their government. Although the Moroccan King had been cited as more of a reformer than his father, protesters argued that his reforms had not gone far enough and that human rights violations were still being conducted in the country.The king commented on the protests and vowed change, but continued protests led to the creation of a committee to advise on constitutional changes to shift power away from the king. The king stated that he would support the changes and allow for a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, allowing for the changes to be voted on July 1, 2011.

See also

• International Ballot Measures project