Voters Go to Polls; Fairness Promised

Moroccans voted in what the government promised would be the country’s first free and fair elections, emerging from polling booths with their thumbs dyed purple to prevent them from voting twice. The legislative vote is the first under King Mohammed VI and is an important step in the reform process he launched after the 1999 death of his father, Hassan II.

Although Mohammed has relaxed censorship and let political exiles return, criticism of the king remains taboo. Past elections were considered rigged and corrupt, but there were relatively few reports of serious violations this time.