Internet censorship in Morocco

[4] Testing by the OpenNet Initiative revealed that Morocco no longer filters a majority of sites in favor of independence of the Western Sahara, which were previously blocked.

However, some patterns emerge and it seems that the blocked sites are often related to the Polisario Front, a pro-independence movement in Western Sahara, to Islamist extremists and fundamentalists, to carrying non-official or subversive information about King Mohammed VI such as parodic videos on YouTube.

[3] When videos judged offensive to the king were posted on YouTube, Maroc Telecom decided to ban the site, without basing its act on a judiciary decision.

[6] Fouad Mourtada, a Moroccan engineer, was sentenced by a Casablanca court to three years in prison for creating a fake profile of the king's brother on Facebook.

[16] Additionally it addressed a message to France's Minister of Foreign Affairs Laurent Fabius, asking him to mention the case of Anouzla in his meeting with his Moroccan counterpart.

Unlike other Middle Eastern countries, Morocco remains a monarchy and has relatively more relaxed laws regarding street protests.

[18] Morocco adapted to a changing electronic era by creating and reforming state agencies with rather flexible rules on surveillance.

In the past the government had been exposed for using Eagle, a French Surveillance company to watch individual's internet activity and enable mass monitoring.

[19] In 2012 a draft bill called the Code Numérique was introduced, which would restrict online rights and yield power to government with vague guidelines.

In 2013 Maghreb Digital program's "Maroc Numeric" 2013 strategy was released to reinforce this legislation, but was abandoned soon after due to backlash primarily expressed on social media.

One of the most prolific events entailed sentencing Rachid Nini, executive producer and founder of Al-Massae, an independent publication, to one year in jail for "compromising national security" in an opinion article.

"The press freedom situation will keep deteriorating unless the king decides to turn this bleak page,"[22]The Moroccan constitution vows to protect the rights of free expression, but its spectrum is left vague.

[19] Unlike its predecessors such as Talk Morocco, this site was able to garner more attention by publishing in various languages and being the single citizen media outlet, or a voice for the people.

On 10 March, after the King's speech promising constitutional reform, Mamfakinch posted a critical analysis along with an announcement that it was still protesting because they didn't believe real change can occur from the top.

[28] Mamfakinch played an especially important role in the international community by representing real Moroccan civilian's values, particularly while western commentators praised the King's response.

On 13 July 2012, at the height of its international recognition, members of Mamfakinch unknowingly granted the government access to their computers via an encrypted email.