Wahbi: 26,000 inmates benefit from royal pardon, and 447 from conditional release this year
Justice Minister Abdelatif Wahbi confirmed today in Parliament that the pardon institution plays a crucial role in encouraging inmates to improve their behavior and participate in rehabilitation programs, as well as contributing to reducing overcrowding in prisons.
During his presentation of the budget allocation for the justice sector before the Justice, Legislation, and Human Rights Committee of the House of Representatives, Wahbi emphasized that the royal directives focus on strengthening the rule of law and encouraging all citizens to participate in development. He clarified that 26,190 inmates have benefited this year from the royal pardon and conditional release mechanism.
The minister noted that the conditional release aims to reward beneficiaries and alleviate overcrowding in prison facilities, ensuring that inmates are placed in families that will assume responsibility for housing or employing them, under the supervision of public prosecutors, judges overseeing penalties, and local authorities. He indicated that the number of beneficiaries from this mechanism this year reached 447 inmates.
Wahbi also highlighted that the national strategy to combat terrorism and extremism is not limited to punitive measures but includes a reformative dimension through the “Reconciliation” program launched by the General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration in cooperation with the Mohammedan League of Scholars, the National Human Rights Council, and specialized experts.
The “Reconciliation” program aims to provide religious rehabilitation for inmates, legal training to understand rights and duties, alongside psychological, social, and economic rehabilitation through training and education programs to support their reintegration into the job market and society after their release.
The Justice Minister affirmed that King Mohammed VI granted a royal pardon to 179 inmates who participated in the “Reconciliation” program since its inception between 2017 and 2025, across 15 sessions organized to date, in line with royal directives supporting the reformative and humanitarian dimension of criminal justice policy.
