The Chairperson of the National Human Rights Council, Amina Bouayach, confirmed today in Rabat that spatial justice is a central issue in the course of protecting human rights.
Bouayach stated in a speech during an exploratory workshop on “Spatial Justice: Opportunities and Possibilities through the Consideration of Spatial Particularities” that the council has been addressing the issue of spatial justice since 2019, recognizing it as a central concern in the protection of human rights. She added that several fundamental human rights issues intersect in establishing this justice.
In this context, she noted that these human rights issues encompass civil, political, economic, social, cultural, and environmental dimensions, particularly the rights to education, health, adequate housing, a healthy environment, mobility, non-discrimination, and development.
She emphasized that these and other rights “can only be realized in a geographical space, specifically within both natural and human environments, for spatial justice to be a fundamental tool in making human rights a tangible reality for citizens and effective in their implementation.”
Bouayach pointed out that the importance of spatial justice, for the council, lies in its contribution to uncovering spatial disparities, which can be seen as a manifestation of what may be considered a silent violation of basic rights. She clarified that the primary aim of this justice is “to neutralize the impact of the geographical area in which people live on their ability to access their basic rights.”
In this framework, Bouayach asserted that the council has made the achievement of that justice an important and useful analytical tool in addressing some complex and intricate issues in the field of human rights protection, adding that it encompasses a concept integrating the geographical, legal, and sociological dimensions of human rights issues.
She stressed the need to ensure that spatial particularities, with their dimensions and cultural influences, can open new avenues for diversifying opportunities for human development, calling for the exploration of possible ways to enhance emerging freedoms through the opportunities provided by spatial justice.
Bouayach concluded that the consideration of spatial particularities should be conducted through a vertical approach, focusing on the specifics of each area individually, as well as through a horizontal approach that takes into account the potential for integration among various forms of terrain, including mountains, oases, and coastlines.
The workshop proceedings included four discussion sessions, with the first centered on “Access to Essential Services from the Perspective of Spatial Justice,” the second on “Opportunities and Possibilities for Recognizing the Particularities of the Mountains.”
The third session addressed “Opportunities and Possibilities for Recognizing the Particularities of Oases,” while the fourth session explored “Opportunities and Possibilities for Recognizing the Particularities of Coastal Areas.”
