6% less convicted in Morocco in 2003

The number of convicted persons in Moroccan jails decreased from 87,865 in 2002 to 82,537 in 2003, i.e. a 6% decrease, the justice department said.

The ministry's penitentiary administration said the current number of convicts amounts to 54,542, including 1,499 women, according to statistics of late December 2003.