Arbitrary detentions, internal deportations, deprivation of means of communication with family members and lawyers, disproportionate use of force: current immigration control policies in Morocco expose migrants to serious human rights violations that can be considered forced disappearances. This is what emerges from the report “Untraceable: Border practices and forced disappearances in Morocco”, the result of a collaboration between the Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI) and the SOLROUTES research project of the University of Genoa.
The field research conducted between October and November 2024 documents a system of arbitrary detention and internal expulsions that systematically affects those who attempt to cross the borders into Europe, especially sub-Saharan migrants, also arrested in inner cities. These practices also affect people under UNHCR protection, minors and vulnerable people, and follow a deeply racial logic of control and repression.
These practices show several elements that can be considered as forced disappearance. Arrests and deportations take place without any notification, depriving migrants of means of communication and thus making it impossible for them to communicate with family members and legal representatives.
The report also examines two emblematic cases: the “Melilla massacre” of June 2022, with at least 23 dead, 77 injured and 70 people still missing, and the events in Ceuta in September 2024, which resulted in numerous arrests, injuries and disappearances. In both cases, the Moroccan authorities used excessive force, detention and internal deportations to repress attempts at irregular migration.
The authors highlight how these practices violate numerous fundamental rights including the right to freedom and security, the prohibition of collective expulsions, the prohibition of torture, the right to life and the right to truth.
Finally, the document highlights the correlation between these violations and the process of externalization of Europe’s borders, supported by substantial European Union funding to Morocco for the control of migratory flows.
