This archive report was first published on 15 November 2019.
Published on November 15, 2019, a Moroccan rapper is facing two years in prison for offending public officials after releasing a song criticizing the kingdom.
Mohamed Mounir, widely known as Gnawi, was charged in Sale near Rabat over the publication of a video in which he insulted police, but his lawyer claims the real reason for his prosecution is the song he co-wrote about desperate youth in Morocco, unemployment, and corruption.
The song, "Aach al chaab," has been viewed more than 13 million times on YouTube since its release last month. The lyrics denounce injustice and money-grabbing and directly attack Morocco's king, which local media says constitutes a breach of the kingdom's "red lines".
Amnesty International has condemned the rapper's arrest as an "outrageous assault on free speech," and rights groups have expressed outrage on social media.
Young people make up a third of Morocco's 35 million inhabitants, with a quarter of those aged 15 to 24 unemployed and out of school, according to official figures.
