Rise in Human Trafficking Victims in Morocco: A Legal Gap or Government Inaction?

Despite Morocco's legislative efforts to tackle human trafficking, the latest UN reports suggest that Aziz Akhannouch’s government has fallen short in addressing the issue.

A recent United Nations report revealed a rise in identified trafficking victims in Morocco, increasing from 187 in 2023 to 217 in 2024.

Focus on Women and Children

The report, published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on December 12, 2024, and cited by the Justice and Development Party website, underscored that human trafficking in Morocco disproportionately affects vulnerable groups.

Globally, women and girls represent the majority of victims, making up 61% of those identified in 2022. Most are exploited for sexual purposes, a trend that has persisted for years.

The report also noted a 38% rise in the number of girls identified as victims. In some regions, children now account for the majority of detected trafficking cases.

The UN described its 2024 Global Report on Trafficking in Persons as a wake-up call, urging immediate action to protect those subjected to exploitation in today’s unstable global landscape.

Following a decline in victim detection during the COVID-19 pandemic, the report highlighted a sharp increase in 2022, surpassing pre-pandemic levels with a 25% rise compared to 2019.

Legal Gaps

Commenting on recent statistics, Mohamed Nouini, a lawyer and researcher in international humanitarian law, noted that Morocco adopted its anti-trafficking law in September 2016 to protect children and women from sexual and physical exploitation.

However, Nouini told Al-Estiklal that the law is being misused to target opposition figures and human rights defenders. He explained that its vague and broad language makes it open to varying interpretations.

He highlighted the case of journalist Taoufik Bouachrine, who was charged with human trafficking and sentenced to 15 years in prison, of which he served five before receiving a royal pardon from King Mohammed VI in the summer of 2024. The United Nations had previously described his detention as arbitrary and called for his release.

Nouini argued that legal security requires precision, clarity, and comprehensibility in drafting laws. Yet, the vague language used to define human trafficking under this law allows for subjective interpretation, especially when it comes to silencing dissenting voices and critics.

“This is why many human rights defenders in Morocco, including journalists and political opponents, are prosecuted under this law,” he said. “It also harms women’s rights, as they are often exploited in these cases through defamation.”

He further stated that the law undermines the rights and freedoms of a society rooted in values of solidarity and mutual support, turning many Moroccans into potential suspects. It also violates fundamental principles of justice, such as the presumption of innocence, the prohibition of retroactive punishment, and the narrow interpretation of criminal law, all of which favor the accused in cases of doubt.

“The original intent of anti-trafficking laws, aligned with international conventions, is to protect vulnerable groups such as children, women, and migrants from organized exploitation,” the lawyer said.

“The authorities should address public policies that perpetuate poverty and vulnerability, pushing individuals into situations where they fall victim to such crimes, rather than using the law to retaliate against critics.”

Human trafficking, he explained, is often a transnational crime orchestrated by organized criminal groups using illegal means for profit. It typically involves multiple perpetrators and a coordinated chain of actions.

Nouini pointed out that the physical acts defining the crime are outlined in Article 448-1, paragraph 1. These include recruiting, luring, transporting, transferring, sheltering, receiving a person, or participating in any of these actions.

“This is a multifaceted crime that often involves threats, abduction, or deception, typically carried out through the abuse of authority,” Nouini explained. “When these elements converge, they form the crime of human trafficking. It is a persistent offense that unfolds over time and requires deliberate criminal intent to be established.”

The key element, he stressed, is exploitation as defined in paragraph 3 of Article 448-1.

In response to these challenges, Morocco’s government committee for coordinating anti-trafficking measures approved a national plan for 2023–2030 in March 2023.

Practically, authorities have opened a reception center for trafficking victims in the Fez-Meknes region and signed a partnership agreement to establish an emergency and temporary shelter for victims of human trafficking.

A Wake-Up Call

Adil Tchikitou, head of the Moroccan League for the Defense of Human Rights, described the sharp rise in the number of identified human trafficking victims in Morocco as a wake-up call requiring urgent intervention to address this troubling phenomenon.

Speaking to The Voice (Sawt el-Maghrib) on December 13, 2024, Tchikitou emphasized that the rise from 187 victims last year to 217 in 2024 signals profound challenges requiring a comprehensive examination of their underlying causes.

Human trafficking networks exploit the vulnerable, particularly women and girls, who face dire economic and social circumstances.

“Poverty, unemployment, and irregular migration are among the primary factors that heighten the risk of exploitation for these groups,” Tchiquitou explained.

“Insufficient public awareness of the dangers of trafficking and the absence of preventative measures exacerbate the issue. Many victims are lured in by false promises of better jobs or improved living conditions, unaware of the dangers involved.”

Tchiquitou highlighted that sexual exploitation continues to be the primary driver of trafficking, describing it as a persistent issue that underscores the absence of robust laws to criminalize such acts and enforce strict penalties on offenders.

“Morocco must strengthen cooperation between government agencies and civil society organizations while intensifying awareness and legal efforts to combat these crimes and protect victims,” he concluded.

Human rights advocate Mohamed Nouini emphasized that legislation against human trafficking aims to combat the growing phenomenon of organized transnational criminal networks, which primarily target vulnerable groups such as women, children, and irregular migrants.

“These networks exploit Morocco's role as both a transit and settlement hub for individuals aspiring to migrate to Europe; the widening disparities between urban and rural areas also contribute to internal migration, creating further vulnerabilities,” Nouini told Al-Estiklal.

He highlighted that Moroccan citizens themselves often fall victim to these networks abroad. Documented instances of human trafficking include exploiting children in domestic labor, begging, and prostitution, particularly in certain tourist cities.

“There have also been cases of boys being forced into labor, working in artisanal workshops, traditional crafts, and mechanics,” Nouini added.

Moroccan and foreign women, particularly irregular migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, are coerced into prostitution, begging, and domestic work. They endure exploitation through passport confiscation, unpaid wages, physical abuse, and even trafficking of human organs and tissues, according to the rights advocate.

Despite these challenges, Morocco was elected as co-chair for the 14th session of the Working Group on Trafficking in Persons, held at the United Nations headquarters in Vienna on July 8–9, 2024, alongside the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.