Fez- Moulay Hafil El Alamy, Moroccan Minister of Industry and digital economy, decided to withdraw a controversial draft bill called “the digital bill,” which was made public earlier this week, according to Moroccan news portal Le360.
The draft bill, which was sent to the Secretariat of the Government and scheduled to be discussed by the parliament, caused a stir in Morocco as it contains a number of provisions that might suppress the freedom of expression on the internet.
The most controversial article of this 114-article bill is article 73, which states:
“It is prohibited to publish offensive content showing, explicitly or implicitly, scenes, pictures or words that are violent or in violation of the ethics and public order, or elements that could encourage abuse or lack of reserve or neglect or may interfere with the Islamic religion or political beliefs of the people, or the private life individuals, or elements exploiting the lack of experience and naïveté of minors.”
The ambiguity contained in this article caused an uproar among Moroccans who expressed their fear to see the government interpret the law in a way that would enable it to suppress the freedom of expression on the internet.
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