A few days ago, the primary court in the city of Safi sentenced activist Abdelfettah Houfi to prison, fines, and the loss of his civil and political rights over a Facebook post he published last January. He was sentenced to four years in prison, fined 40,000 dirhams, and stripped of his right to vote or run for office, effectively depriving him of all civil and political rights as well as the right to hold any honorary titles. The court also ruled him ineligible to serve as a juror or expert and barred him from testifying in any official document or in court, except as a witness. In addition, he was declared unfit to act as a guardian or supervisor for anyone other than his own children. Houfi was also banned from carrying weapons, serving in the military, teaching, managing a school, or working in any educational institution as a teacher or instructor for a period of 20 years from the date the sentence becomes final. Furthermore, the court prohibited him from residing in the city of Safi for 10 years from the date the sentence is finalized, and ordered that he bear the costs and be notified at the lowest administrative level. He was prosecuted on charges of inciting the commission of misdemeanors through electronic means, showing disrespect toward constitutional institutions, insulting public officials in the course of their duties, and failing to renew his national ID card.
