NEW YORK – A committee protecting journalists is calling on Moroccan authorities to stop suppressing independent reporting from the occupied Western Sahara after two Italian freelance journalists are the latest to be deported from conflict zones.
“The deportation of Italian journalist Matteo Galaboglia and photographer Giovanni Cormoni is another sign of Morocco’s oppressive media blockade in the occupied Western Sahara,” said CPJ Regional Director Sara Kuda. “The authorities must allow independent reporting from areas where transparency is already severely restricted.”
On April 27, the journalist tried to enter the capital of the territory, Rayonne, from the north, but was arrested by security forces and taken to Agadir in the southwest, where he was expelled from Morocco.
Moroccan officials said the journalist had no official approval and committed “provocative acts” as he had previously tried to enter Western Sahara via the air.
Hespress cited an unnamed source saying that journalists are trying to promote separatist agendas. Western Sahara Press Freedom Group’s Equip Media said there was no evidence provided to support the claim.
The separatist Polisario Front, representing Morocco and the Indigenous Saharans, has been controversy over former Spanish colonies since Morocco’s annexation in 1975.
Italian journalists had planned to document the human rights situation, the Sahara Press Service reported.
Morocco considers some of the territory of the Western Sahara and requires journalists to obtain permission to report from the area. Many international journalists are expelled from the territory, not just human rights observers and politicians.
There are few independent outlets in Morocco. It is mostly owned by political and business elites, and criticism of Western Sahara and monarchy government policies is not permitted.
The CPJ requested comment from Morocco’s Ministry of Home Affairs but did not receive a response.
