His Majesty King Mohammed Vi: Morocco always sought to protect, promote human rights

The projects launched in the country are meant to protect individual and collective freedoms, and preserve the citizen's dignity and rights, the monarch said in a message to the 9th biennial meeting of the International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scientific Societies, which kicked off in Rabat. In the message, which was read by Justice Minister, Abdelwahed Radi, the sovereign recalled the "groundbreaking" family law, enacted to uphold gender equality and the best interests of children. He also stressed the "pioneering" initiative that have built on the mechanisms of transitional justice to address past human rights violations. The monarch underlined that this initiative has made it possible to "ensure individual and collective redress, create conditions conducive to the consolidation of our country's achievements in this area, and expand the scope of human rights protection, adding that this initiative has been actively implemented and has received extensive praise from international human rights institutions and organizations. He also highlighted the north African country’s National Initiative for Human Development, aimed to fight marginalization, social exclusion and poverty. King Mohammed VI recalled that Morocco has always honoured scholars and scientists, noting that “many eminent scholars from the East and from Andalusia came to Al-Qarawiyin in Fez, one of the oldest universities in the world. Stressing that the role of scientists and scholars is to reconcile the pursuit of knowledge with the virtue of exercising, he underpinned that “any scientific activity should seek, first and foremost, to achieve the well-being and prosperity of mankind. In this context, the sovereign made it clear that Morocco condemns any tendentious use of science and technology for dubious ends, voicing personal concern about “the unprecedented ethical and legal implications of the failure to monitor and control some genetic engineering practices. He called on the scientists to be “extremely vigilant,” and to seek to develop universal principles in bioethics. “I urge you to ensure compliance with these principles, update them and make sure they are constantly adjusted to rapid developments in science and technology. The Network’s meeting is held for the first time in its history in an African, Arab and Islamic country.