If there’s one unpleasant thing about Moroccan restaurants, it’s the total absence of a non-smoking area. With very few exceptions – and certainly not in traditional restaurants – the no-smoking zone is a totally unknown concept, and when you complain about it, you are told with a smile that this is not France, and that smoking is allowed here.
But this is partly untrue. In fact, Moroccan legislation also prohibits smoking in certain public places. But everyone is blithely unaware of this, and the precise text of the Dahir is almost impossible to find.
It took nearly three hours of research to find the precise reference: “Law 15-91, published in Official Gazette no. 4381 4318 on 2 August 1995 and which came into force in 1996, prohibits smoking in certain public places and bans tobacco propaganda and advertising”.
From this, finally, I can find the text:
“ART. 4.
– For the purposes of this Act, “public places” shall mean all places intended for collective use, all public services, public establishments and administrative offices. Consequently, smoking is prohibited in the following public places in particular:
– Common administrative offices and meeting rooms in public, semi-public and private administrations;
– hospitals, clinics, convalescent homes, health centres and preventive services of all categories;
– means of public transport, with the exception of areas reserved for smokers;
– theatres, cinemas and places where public events are held;
– classrooms, lecture theatres and rooms in public or private teaching, education and training establishments.
[…]
ART. 11.
– Any person who smokes tobacco or tobacco products in places where smoking is prohibited shall be liable to a fine of between 10 and 50 dirhams”.
Strangely, restaurants are not mentioned. On the other hand, the law does apply in restaurants with folklore shows!
PS: it should also be noted that the text in question, taken from the Ministry of Health website, is absolutely impossible to find from the home page…
Wanted: non-smoking restaurants
If, by any chance, you come across a restaurant with a small non-smoking area… let us know and we’ll try to collect these precious places.
A typo or syntax error? You can select the text and hit Ctrl+Enter to send us a message. Thank you! If this post interested you, maybe you can also leave a comment. We'd love to exchange with you !
