By Aziz El Yaakoubi
RABAT (Reuters) - A prominent Moroccan intellectual who went on hunger strike a week ago, protesting against a travel ban and police harassment, has collapsed and is in hospital, members of his support committee said on Wednesday. Critics say Morocco's king is letting slide freedoms that he promised four years ago as a concession to protesters when he approved a new constitution devolving some court powers to parliament and the government in unheralded political reforms.
It is the second time Maati Monjib, a professor of
political history and African studies at the University
of Rabat and a writer for national and international
news organizations, has been on hunger strike. He
collapsed on Tuesday night.
"He is still in the hospital, we were expecting him to
leave on Wednesday morning but doctors said that
his blood pressure is not stable," said Samad Ayach,
a member of Monjib's support committee.
Monjib started a second hunger strike last
Wednesday after authorities banned him from
boarding a plane to Norway for an international
conference on journalism in Lillehammer. He went
on three days hunger strike earlier this month when
he was banned from going to a conference in
Barcelona.
Moroccan authorities said they imposed the ban
because of an investigation into suspected financial
wrongdoing.
Monjib and many of his associates have been
interrogated by Moroccan police on allegations of
tarnishing Morocco's image abroad, getting funds
from hostile foreign organizations and destabilizing
citizens' confidence in their institutions.
"I know my health would not tolerate hunger strikes,
but better to die than live in such injustice," Monjib
told Reuters two days before he collapsed.
He is known in Morocco for supporting Moroccan
investigative journalism. He closed his Ibn Rochd
Institute (Averroes) saying authorities had banned
many of its meetings and conferences.
This and the Moroccan association of investigative
journalism (AMJI), another group in which Monjib
was involved, were funded by Netherlands-based
organizations Free Press and IMS (International
Media Support).
An interior ministry statement said Monjib was
banned from traveling because of a financial
investigation into Ibn Rochd.
The Moroccan government spokesman and
communication minister did not answer calls for a
comment.
Hicham Mansouri, an investigative reporter working
for AMJI, was sentenced to 10 months in prison on
an adultery charge last March that critics say was an
attempt to muzzle him.
Morocco television is tightly controlled and
outspoken publications have been forced out of
business, usually citing pressure on advertisers. Text reporters enjoy more freedom, but still risk being imprisoned for critical writings.
www.news.yahoo.com/moroccan-intellectual-collapses-hunger-strike-over-ban-152015060.html

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