Moroccan Constitutional Referendum, 2011 on:
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A referendum on constitutional reforms was held in
* High administrative and diplomatic posts (including ambassadors, CEOs of state-owned companies, provincial and regional governors), are now appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the ministerial council which is presided by the king, previously the latter exclusively held this power.
* The prime minister is the head of government; he has the power to dissolve the parliament.
* The prime minister will preside over the council of Government, which prepares the general policy of the state. Previously the king held this position.
* The parliament has the power of granting amnesty. Previously this was exclusively held by the king.
* The judiciary system is independent from the legislative and executive branch, the king guarantees this independence.
* Women are guaranteed "civic and social" equality with men. Previously, only "political" equality was guaranteed, though the 1996 constitution grants all citizens equality in terms of rights and before the law.1996 Moroccan constitution
* The King would retain complete control of the armed forces, foreign policy, the judiciary, and matters pertaining to religion, and would also retain authority for choosing and dismissing prime ministers
*All citizens have the freedom of thought, ideas, artistic expression and creation. Previously only free-speech and the freedom of circulation and association were guaranteed.
ArabicFrench
{{Mohammed VI , state=collapsed 2011 in Morocco 2011 referendums 2011–2012 Moroccan protests Constitutional referendums in Morocco Referendums in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...
on 1 July 2011. It was called in response to a series of protests across Morocco that began on 20 February 2011 when over ten thousand Moroccans participated in demonstrations demanding democratic reforms. A commission was to draft proposals by June 2011. A draft released on 17 June foresaw the following changes:
* requiring the King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...
to name a Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
, renamed Head of government, from the largest party in Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
;
* handing a number of rights from the monarch to the PM, including dissolution of parliament
The dissolution of a legislative assembly is the mandatory simultaneous resignation of all of its members, in anticipation that a successive legislative assembly will reconvene later with possibly different members. In a democracy, the new assemb ...
;
* allowing parliament to grant amnesty
Amnesty (from the Ancient Greek ἀμνηστία, ''amnestia'', "forgetfulness, passing over") is defined as "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of people, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power offici ...
, previously a privilege of the monarch;
* making Berber
Berber or Berbers may refer to:
Ethnic group
* Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa
* Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages
Places
* Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile
People with the surname
* Ady Berber (1913–19 ...
an official language alongside Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
The changes were reportedly approved by 98.49% of voters. Despite protest movements calling for a boycott of the referendum, government officials claimed turnout was 72.65%.
Following the referendum, early parliamentary elections were held on 25 November 2011.
Details
The set of political reforms approved consisted of the following: * The Amazigh language is an official state language along withArabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
.Article 5 of the 2011 Moroccan constitution
* The state preserves and protects the Hassānīya language and all the linguistic components of the Moroccan culture as a heritage of the nation.
* The king has the obligation to appoint a prime minister from the party that wins the most seats in the parliamentary elections. Previously, he could nominate a technocrat in this position if no party has a decisive advantage over the other parties in terms of the number of seats in the parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
.
* The king is no longer "sacred" but the "integrity of his person" is "inviolable".
* High administrative and diplomatic posts (including ambassadors, CEOs of state-owned companies, provincial and regional governors), are now appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the ministerial council which is presided by the king, previously the latter exclusively held this power.
* The prime minister is the head of government; he has the power to dissolve the parliament.
* The prime minister will preside over the council of Government, which prepares the general policy of the state. Previously the king held this position.
* The parliament has the power of granting amnesty. Previously this was exclusively held by the king.
* The judiciary system is independent from the legislative and executive branch, the king guarantees this independence.
* Women are guaranteed "civic and social" equality with men. Previously, only "political" equality was guaranteed, though the 1996 constitution grants all citizens equality in terms of rights and before the law.1996 Moroccan constitution
* The King would retain complete control of the armed forces, foreign policy, the judiciary, and matters pertaining to religion, and would also retain authority for choosing and dismissing prime ministers
*All citizens have the freedom of thought, ideas, artistic expression and creation. Previously only free-speech and the freedom of circulation and association were guaranteed.
Results
References
External links
*Full text of the proposed new ConstitutionArabic
{{Mohammed VI , state=collapsed 2011 in Morocco 2011 referendums 2011–2012 Moroccan protests Constitutional referendums in Morocco Referendums in Morocco