Melilla migration drama: dozens of migrants sentenced to prison terms
The consequences of the massive attempt by migrants shocked public opinion, due to the death of at least 23 people.
Here during the incident, June 24, 2022. AP - Javier Bernardo
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
It is a “ severe
” sentence
and “
without convincing proof
”, considers the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH), which thus criticizes the Moroccan justice system which has sentenced several dozen migrants to prison terms.
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The facts date back to the end of June, when nearly 2,000 foreigners, mainly from Sudan, tried to force their way into the Spanish enclave of Melilla, located on Moroccan soil.
Clashes with the police had then degenerated, killing at least 23 people, according to an official report.
Justice has therefore chosen prison for many arrested migrants, which the AMDH strongly contests.
Several dozen people were sentenced to 2.5 to 3 years in prison, for illegal entry into Morocco, violence against law enforcement officers and armed mob.
"
Unfair sentences that support Morocco's migration policies
", said Souad Lazreg, of the AMDH.
For lawyer Khalid Ameza, the minutes included confessions that the defendants had nevertheless denied throughout the procedure.
Despite this, they are sentenced to "
very severe penalties which have not been justified by logical and convincing arguments
", estimated the lawyer.
The problem in particular, according to him, is the fact that the police forces interviewed never clearly identified which migrant had done what that day.
It was June 24.
Nearly 2,000 people, mostly Sudanese, tried to enter Melilla, via the Nador border post, causing clashes which, according to Rabat, left 23 dead, and according to the AMDH 27 dead.
It is, in any case, the heaviest toll ever recorded in these regular forced passages to one of the two Spanish enclaves located on Moroccan soil.
Amnesty had accused the officers of beating immobilized people, refusing treatment to the injured and using tear gas on people in an enclosed space.
The media had investigated and denounced the brutality of the Moroccan authorities.
For its part, the Spanish justice, this week, closed the file, saying that the national forces had not committed any crime.
Read also: Melilla migration drama: the Spanish prosecutor's office closes its investigation
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