Lawmaker found guilty of defaming

A member of the Moroccan parliament has been given a one-month suspended jail sentence and fined ninety-five dollars after being convicted of defaming a journalist last year.

Mahmoud Archane, secretary-general of the Democratic Social Movement, described the journalist, Narji Rerhaye, as a sexually aggressive woman after she published an artilce identifying him as a former torturer of prisoners.

Writing in a party newspaper Mr Achane referred to her as a woman in heat.

Narji Rerhaye said the conviction of Mr Achane was a collective victory for human rights groups.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service