Moroccan court sentences cartoonist Yasser Mounbir to four years for king caricatures

The verdict

A court in Casablanca sentenced Yasser Mounbir, 22, to four years in prison on Sunday, 1 November, according to his lawyer, Farouk Mehdaoui. The court convicted him of insulting the king and of insulting public officials, and it also imposed a fine of 40,000 dirhams. The ruling was issued at first instance, so the case is not closed. Mehdaoui said the defence will file an appeal. Reports differ on the euro and dollar equivalents of the fine, with 7sur7 and Spiegel citing about 3,600 euros, RTE about 9,756 euros and ANSA about 4,000 dollars, but all reports give the same figure in dirhams.

How the case began

Mounbir was arrested in June after posting caricatures of King Mohammed VI on his Instagram account. The Moroccan Association for Human Rights had demanded his release at the time. Article 179 of the Moroccan penal code bans defamation, insult or infringement of the private life of the king, and it provides for prison sentences of six months to two years. Reports say the penalty can be doubled when the offence is committed electronically, which applies to the posts at the centre of this case.

Reaction and what comes next

Human rights groups reacted with alarm to the verdict, according to Spiegel. Rights advocates in Morocco argue that the law stifles freedom of speech and want it abolished. They also want people sentenced over social media posts to be pardoned. The appeal is the next step, and no date for the appeal hearing appears in the reports.