A Traditional Royal Gesture on the Holiday of the Throne in Morocco

We all know how different people recount to us the same story based on what they think is important. So I decided to paste two articles about the Holiday of the Throne in Morocco and what it means and what is new because each one paints a slightly different picture.

The first is an AP article that ran in Gulfnews


Moroccan king pardons nearly 25,000 prisoners

AP
Published: July 29, 2009, 23:14

Rabat: King Mohammad VI has pardoned nearly 25,000 prisoners, in a traditional royal gesture, on the 10th anniversary of his coronation.

He has also made small adjustments to the government.

The North African kingdom's Justice Ministry said on Wednesday that among the 24,865 prisoners, some were pregnant women, children, the aged and 659 foreigners convicted in Morocco.

Most of those pardoned were being freed from jail. However, some received reduced sentences, including 32 on death row whose sentences were reduced to life in prison.

The 45-year-old king has used the occasion to tweak the government, notably naming writer Bensalem Himmich culture minister, replacing former actress Saadia Kritef, in ill health.
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And here is the second article from France24's International News Site

King Mohammed VI pardons inmates ahead of 10th royal anniversary

AFP - Morocco's King Mohammed VI, on the eve of commemorations of his 10th anniversary on the throne, granted Wednesday pardons to 24,865 prisoners, and commuted 32 death sentences, the government said.

The Moroccan monarch traditionally gives hundreds, even thousands, of pardons to inmates each year as the country celebrates the Feast of the Throne.

In selecting who should be pardoned, the king took into account "humanitarian considerations in allowing the prisoners back into society," which led to the release of 517 women who are pregnant or have children and 137 minors, the justice ministry said in a statement.

In another "magnanimous gesture", Mohammed VI pardoned 659 inmates of different nationalities and commuted 32 death sentences to life imprisonment, the ministry said.

Moroccan courts still hand down death sentences but no execution has been carried out since 1994.

The 45-year-old king will celebrate Thursday 10 years since he was crowned king after the death of his father Hassan II.

Also on the eve of the anniversary, Mohammed VI named three new ministers and a secretary of state in a mini-cabinet reshuffle, which included two members of the country's Berber MP (Popular Movement) party.

Analysts said the appointments were to help secure for Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi the support of the Berbers in parliament.