The Fouad Mourtada Affair
Encyclopedia
Fouad Mourtada is a 26-year old Moroccan
engineer
who was sentenced by a Casablanca
court to three years in prison for creating a fake profile of the king’s brother on Facebook
. He was convicted on February 23rd, 2008 of "villainous practices linked to the alleged theft" of the prince's identity. Fouad was sentenced to 3 years of jail plus a fine of 10,000 Dirhams
.
According to Help Free Fouad web site, one week after his disappearance and imprisonment by the Moroccan police on Tuesday, February 5th, Fouad's family was able to visit him on Tuesday, February 12th afternoon at Oukacha jail in Casablanca
, Morocco. Fouad had stated that he was embarked, blindfolded, interrogated, persecuted, beaten up, slapped, spat on, slammed for hours with a tool on the head and the legs until he lost consciousness several times and lost the notion of time.
Concerning the Facebook account, Fouad indicated that he created the account (about the Prince) on January 15, 2008. It remained on line a few days before somebody closed it. In his defence, Fouad brings up the fact that there are many profiles of celebrities on Facebook and that there was no malicious intent on his part, that he admired the prince and that the profile was set up for fun.
According to Fouad's lawyer, Ali Ammar, he could be facing 5 years of prison "for having done what thousands of people throughout the world do everyday: Create a profile of a celebrity or a star on Facebook".
On February 19th, a number of influential Moroccan blogs sites were 'on strike', protesting over the detention of Fouad.
On February 23rd, Fouad Mourtada was sentenced to three years in jail for the alleged creation of the fake Facebook profile and fined 10,000 Dirhams.
On the evening of March 18, 2008, Fouad was released by a royal pardon after spending 43 days in jail.
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
who was sentenced by a Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
court to three years in prison for creating a fake profile of the king’s brother on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
. He was convicted on February 23rd, 2008 of "villainous practices linked to the alleged theft" of the prince's identity. Fouad was sentenced to 3 years of jail plus a fine of 10,000 Dirhams
Moroccan dirham
The dirham is the currency of Morocco. The plural form is pronounced darahim, although in French and English "dirhams" is commonly used. Its ISO 4217 code is "MAD". It is subdivided into 100 santimat . The dirham is issued by the Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank of Morocco...
.
Timeline
According to Maghreb Arab Presse "members of the royal family have neither web sites nor blogs, and the only official way to obtain information about them is through the portal of the Maghreb Arab Press Agency (MAP-national)".According to Help Free Fouad web site, one week after his disappearance and imprisonment by the Moroccan police on Tuesday, February 5th, Fouad's family was able to visit him on Tuesday, February 12th afternoon at Oukacha jail in Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
, Morocco. Fouad had stated that he was embarked, blindfolded, interrogated, persecuted, beaten up, slapped, spat on, slammed for hours with a tool on the head and the legs until he lost consciousness several times and lost the notion of time.
Concerning the Facebook account, Fouad indicated that he created the account (about the Prince) on January 15, 2008. It remained on line a few days before somebody closed it. In his defence, Fouad brings up the fact that there are many profiles of celebrities on Facebook and that there was no malicious intent on his part, that he admired the prince and that the profile was set up for fun.
According to Fouad's lawyer, Ali Ammar, he could be facing 5 years of prison "for having done what thousands of people throughout the world do everyday: Create a profile of a celebrity or a star on Facebook".
On February 19th, a number of influential Moroccan blogs sites were 'on strike', protesting over the detention of Fouad.
On February 23rd, Fouad Mourtada was sentenced to three years in jail for the alleged creation of the fake Facebook profile and fined 10,000 Dirhams.
On the evening of March 18, 2008, Fouad was released by a royal pardon after spending 43 days in jail.