UN: Morocco Gets Top-Notch Rating for its Anti-Torture Law

Morocco has been awarded ‘A’ rating by the UN Human Rights Committee for adopting the law on the national mechanism for the prevention of torture, designating its National Human Rights Council as the operative body.

The North African kingdom is among the five countries that topped this year the UN committee’s ranking for the implementation of selected recommendations. Besides Morocco, the Committee’s list includes Argentina, Burkina Faso, Denmark and Sweden. They also received ‘A’s in the Committee’s follow-up review of their action on priority recommendations.

The ‘A’ rating reflects “significant action” taken towards implementing recommendations.

The UN Human Rights Committee is formed of independent experts that monitor implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by its member countries.

The Covenant signatory states pledge to respect, protect and fulfill a list of civil and political rights. These include the right to a fair trial, the right to peaceful assembly, the right to vote and political participation, to mention only a few examples. These countries periodically report to the Committee on the implementation of their legal obligations under the Covenant.