FOM Newsletter May 2003
Morocco Week in Review 
May 24 2003

RABAT, May 21 - US ambassador to Morocco, Margaret Tutwiler, condemned Wednesday the terrorist attacks perpetrated last week in Casablanca, killing 41 people. In an interview with MAP news agency, the diplomat reiterated the sincere condolences and deep sympathy expressed by President W. Bush and state secretary Collin Powell to H.M. king Mohammed VI, the Moroccan people and the victims' families.  Terrorism has become a common enemy, she said, warning that all civilized peoples and nations are threatened by extremism. Tutwiler said she was aware that the Moroccan people, like the US, rejects this kind of violence and terrorism," she said. Since the 9/11 events, the leaders of the civilized world, including Morocco, have exerted efforts to understand this phenomenon, and mobilized all means to eradicate it, the ambassador said. Terrorism has become a serious problem to which we must absolutely find solutions, like the elaboration of laws repressing such acts, consolidating economic cooperation and promoting investments to create more jobs for young people. Morocco and the United States have already embarked in such economic cooperation, especially through the free trade agreement, currently being negotiated between the two countries, she said.

An anti-terrorism bill was unanimously approved on Tuesday by the justice, legislation and human rights commission of the House of Representatives (lower chamber of the parliament) The bill was approved after commission members approved amendments proposed by majority parties at the parliament and deputies of the Democratic Forces Front (FFD). Minister of justice, Mohamed Bouzouba?, told the first Moroccan TV channel on Tuesday he considers the unanimous approval of the bill a confirmation that all the Moroccan people is against terrorism, and are sending "a crystal clear message to the authors of such criminal acts." Our country is united in the face of all hardships to defend all its democratic gains, he said. In the same regard, the commission's chairman, Abdellah Baha, stressed thatregardless of diverging viewpoints on some items of the bills, Moroccans are unified when it comes to defending the country's security and values. The draft law on terrorism was first tabled before the parliament last April and the specialized commission requested more time to thoroughly examine the bill before adopting it.

Morocco, a gateway of prosperity, democracy in Mideast, Africa, former us ambassador)

The Friday terrorist attacks against Casablanca were aimed at harming "the spirit of tolerance and the values of openness and social and multi-faith coexistence" in Morocco, said Edward Gabriel, former US ambassador to Morocco.  The attacks are also meant to torpedo the democratic drive led in the country under the leadership of King Mohammed VI, Gabriel told CNN. The former diplomat, who described Morocco as "a gateway of prosperity and democracy" in the Middle East and Africa, lauded "the vigorous political and economic reforms" that helped Morocco embark on the path of progress. Morocco enjoys a strategic location in a "volatile neighborhood," said Gabriel, who urged the US administration to extend more backing to Morocco's modernization drive. The former ambassador stressed the close cooperation ties binding Morocco and the USA, recalling the free trade accord being negotiated between Rabat and Washington.

Several Moroccan Jews travelled to the locality of Ait Bayoud, 70 km east of the Moroccan Atlantic city of Essaouira, to celebrate the festival of the Saint Rabbi Nassim Ben Nassim who is buried there. Some visitors even came from abroad to pray at the tomb of the saint who stayed in Ait Bayoud 159 years ago with two of his companions, Rabbis Halevy and Soultan, who were also buried in what became a sanctuary and a site of pilgrimage for several Moroccan Jews. The festival started with the "Ziara" (visit) on Thursday and closed on Sunday with prayers and rituals during which Jews from all over Morocco meet, marking the Moroccan Jewry attachment to the land of their ancestors. This year, the events that shook Casablanca on Friday were on every one's mind as mourning pilgrims considerably reduced the traditional festivities. A Moroccan official delegation, led by Essaouira Governor, Abdeslam Bikrat, attended some of these ceremonies Sunday. The governor reassured pilgrims that Morocco will always remain "a country of tolerance, co-existence and peace." We all should defend the lives of people regardless of their religion, colour and culture because Morocco was and will remain a country of cultural, religious, geographic and ethnic diversity, he insisted. In the same vein, Chief Rabbi of the Jewish sanctuary Nessim Ben Nessim, Marc Bitton, strongly condemned the terrorist attacks perpetrated in Casablanca, stressing that the Jewish community, like all Moroccan citizens, is deeply affected by the atrocity of these ignoble acts  "Jewish Moroccans will always defend the country that belongs to all Moroccans whether Jews or Moslems" Bitton told MAP.

Terrorist attacks target morocco's tolerance and openness, Jewish figures

The string of five terrorist attacks that rocked Casablanca on Friday are targeting Morocco's tolerance and openness, said Serge Berdugo, President of Morocco's Jewish Community. The Moroccan Jewry leader, a former tourism minister, told on Sunday French weekly "Le Journal du Dimanche" the attacks aim to hit three classic targets: foreigners, tourists and Jews. "Since the attacks, I have been receiving messages of sympathy because people know it is the symbol of Morocco as a tolerant and open country that was hit," he went on.  In an earlier statement to the Moroccan second TV channel 2M, Berdugo underlined that terrorists will not succeed in tarnishing Morocco's reputation as a stable and safe haven of peace, tolerance and co-existence.

A 400,000-year-old stone object unearthed in Morocco could be the world's oldest attempt at sculpture.

That is the claim of a prehistoric art specialist who says the ancient rock bears clear signs of modification by humans. The object, which is around six centimetres in length, is shaped like a human figure, with grooves that suggest a neck, arms and legs. On its surface are flakes of a red substance that could be remnants of paint. The object was found 15 metres below the eroded surface of a terrace on the north bank of the river Draa near the town of Tan-Tan. It was reportedly lying just a few centimetres away from stone handaxes in ground layers dating to the Middle Acheulian period, which lasted from 500,000 to 300,000 years ago.  

Cultural controversy

The find is likely to further fuel a vociferous debate over the timing of humanity's discovery of symbolism. Hominids such as Homo heidelbergensis and Homo erectus, that were alive during the Acheulian period, are not thought to have been capable of the symbolic thought needed to create art. Writing in the journal Current Anthropology, Robert Bednarik, president of the International Federation of Rock Art Organisations (IFRAO), suggests that the overall shape of the Tan-Tan object was fashioned by natural processes.  But he argues that conspicuous grooves on the surface of the stone, which appear to emphasize its humanlike appearance, are partially man-made. Mr Bednarik claims that some of these grooves were made by repeated battering with a stone tool to connect up natural depressions in the rock. "What we've got is a piece of stone that is largely naturally shaped. "It has some modifications, but they are more than modifications," Mr Bednarik told BBC News Online. Mr Bednarik tried to replicate the markings on a similar piece of rock by hitting a stone flake with a "hammerstone" in the manner of a punch. He then compared the microscopic structure of the fractures with those of the Tan-Tan object.

However, Professor Stanley Ambrose of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign said he saw no evidence for tool marks and that, although the figure was evocative, it was most likely the result of "fortuitous natural weathering". "He [Mr Bednarik] has effectively presented all the information necessary to show this is a naturally weathered rock," Professor Ambrose told BBC News Online.  Professor Ambrose points to Mr Bednarik's observation that some rocks in the vicinity of the figure were weathered and even rounded from transport by water. Professor Ambrose believes that rocks and artifacts found at the site could have been disturbed by flowing water in the past. Mr Bednarik also observes that flecks of a greasy substance containing iron and manganese on the surface of the stone could be red ochre, a substance used as paint by later humans. "They [the specks] do not resemble corroded natural iron deposits, nor has any trace of this pigment been detected on any of the other objects I have examined from Tan-Tan," writes Mr Bednarik in the paper. A 200,000-300,000-year-old stone object found at Berekhat Ram in Israel in 1986 has also been the subject of claims that it is a figurine. However, several other researchers later presented evidence that it was shaped by geological processes. The Tan-Tan object was discovered in 1999, during a dig directed by Lutz Fiedler, the state archaeologist of Hesse in Germany.  

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3047383.stm

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WASHNGTON, May 19 - US President, George W. Bush, told a press conference on Monday it is too early to tell if there is a link between Riyadh and Casablanca terrorist attacks.  At the press conference, jointly held with the Philippines President, Gloria Arroyo, Bush said "We're working on the clues out of Morocco to determine whether there's a direct connection between that al Qaeda operation and what happened in Morocco." Asked if the new series of attacks mean there is a chance that the damages inflicted to Al Qaeda were overestimated, Bush recalled that "I have said that this is going to be -- always said this is going to be a long war, that -- not only a long war, a new kind of war."  Bush added that he is "pleased with the progress we've made," underlining the importance of continuing international cooperation in fighting terrorism.  In the same connection, Arroyo said "poverty and terrorism are twin evils that we must fight," calling for regional cooperation along with actions conducted at the international level.

CASABLANCA, Morocco, May 20 (Reuters) - The Casablanca bombings changed the lives of many people in Sidi Moumen, a poor district of the city where Moroccan authorities say most of the 12 suicide bombers responsible for the attacks came from.  In a teeming shanty town area, a father worries about his son, picked up in a wave of arrests following last Friday's attacks on Jewish and Spanish sites which killed 29 people, including eight foreigners. Less than a mile away, a widow dressed in white mourns her husband, a security guard at a Casablanca hotel who was blown up while trying to stop the bombers from entering the hotel."My husband loved peace," Zahra Hassno said, adding that she does not believe that Moroccans could have been responsible for his death. "They're not real Moroccans who did this. They are criminals," her neighbour Hassan Kassimir added.  Sidi Moumen, a fast-growing district of some 200,000 people on the outskirts of Casablanca, includes areas of modest apartment blocks and sections of stone and corrugated iron shacks jumbled together as far as the eye can see. The cry of the muezzin calling Muslims to prayer at the nearby mosque rings out over the shanty town, where poverty and unemployment are rife. Theshacks, separated by narrow winding paths packed with children and teenagers, have electricity but no running water. It is an area where Muslim fundamentalist groups are reported to have gained an influence, although local people are reluctant to discuss this issue with outsiders.  One woman walked by with a veil covering her face leaving only a slit for the eyes, a custom that Moroccans say has only begun to be seen in the country in recent years.  

ARRESTS EACH NIGHT

Morocco's justice minister said on Sunday the bombers may be linked to the Assirat al Moustaquim group (The Righteous Path), which hit local headlines in February 2002 when some of its members stoned to death a man in Sidi Moumen. The group's members had sought to impose strict Islamic law, harassing womenas well as mixed-sex couples seen in public. Residents say, that since Friday's blasts, police have come to the shanty town each evening to make arrests. Moustapha Aksbi, 60, said police had detained his 28-year-old son Jamal on Sunday. He said his son had a beard -- common among Muslim fundamentalists -- but he had no links to Islamists and did not belong to any association. Jamal, who could not even write his name, had recently begun to take reading and writing lessons from an imam at a local mosque, he added. Fetache Hadaoui, another resident, said the bombings were shameful. "This has always been a peaceful, safe country," said the 66-year-old father of 12 children, speaking through an interpreter. In an apartment in a more prosperous part of Sidi Moumen, the widow of Hassan Karib, the slain guard of the Farah hotel, sat in mourning, surrounded by her four young children, relatives and friends. She had never thought anything like this could happen to her husband. Asked if she thought he was a hero, she said: "I think like any wife who has lost her husband. It's a very deep feeling."  

((Reporting by Adrian Croft; editing by Alison Williams; Reuters messaging:adrian.croft.reuters.com@reuters.net; +212-37 720065))

Adviser to King Mohammed VI, Andre Azoulay, told the British paper The Independent the country had received the active solidarity of a million Moroccan Jews now living abroad "They tell me they feel more Moroccan than ever," he said. Azoulay, who is Jewish, said he was proud to be able to trace his ancestry back hundreds of years. "We have a long history of openness - I don't like this feeble word tolerance - of welcome to all religions, and it is no accident that the huge Jewish diaspora still see Morocco as the mother country," Azoulay said.  On fears that fight against terrorism affects human rights in the kingdom, Azoulay said "we are committed to democracy, but we must take decisions to protect our democracy against those out to kill it." Casablanca was rocked last week by terrorist blasts that killed 41 people. Two explosions targeted a club of the Jewish alliance and an old Jewish cemetery.

Moroccan bombers linked to international terrorism

RABAT, May 20 (Reuters) - The young suicide bombers who killed at least 29 people in Casablanca last week were linked to international terrorism, Morocco said on Tuesday. A day after FBI agents joined the investigation into the five almost simultaneous blasts, Interior Minister Mustapha Sahel said the interrogation of two would-be attackers who survived the blasts had established the link. The arrest of the two terrorists still alive has led to considerable progress in terms of information," he said in a statement carried by the official MAP news agency. "This allows us today to confirm the link with international terrorism". The bomb attacks on Friday night came a few days after the killing of at least 34 people in suicide attacks against Westerners in Saudi Arabia, and prompted fresh warnings from U.S. President George W. Bush that al Qaeda remained a threat. Sahel said 12 Casablanca attackers died by blowing themselves up, not 13 as initially reported, when they struck mainly Jewish and Spanish targets. "One terrorist was apprehended that same night and security services arrested a 14th one on Sunday night," he said. Sahel's statement appeared to contradict an earlier assessment by a government colleague, Justice Minister Mohamed Bouzoubaa, who told Reuters Television on Monday no link had been made with any foreign organisation, including al Qaeda. The dead included four Spaniards, three French nationals and an Italian, MAP said, raising the number of foreigners killed to eight from seven. Bouzoubaa told reporters later on Monday that eight of the suicide bombers, who press reports said were aged 18-24, came from Casablanca's impoverished Sidi Moumen neighbourhood. Some were students. The attacker whose explosive device did not go off, who was arrested on the spot, worked as a parking attendant. Bouzoubaa had earlier pointed to the possible involvement of a little-known Islamist group, Assirat al Moustaquim (The Righteous Path), in the attacks. A staunch ally of the United States, Morocco was a Muslim country listed as "most eligible for liberation" in a tape believed to be from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The tape, released in February, said any Arab leader who supported America would be "an apostate whose blood should be spilled". The U.S. State Department said a team of FBI personnel arrived in Morocco on Monday to help investigate the bombings. "In keeping with our long history of excellent relations with the Moroccan government, the United States has sent an FBI team to assist with the Moroccan investigation into these attacks," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. 

((Reporting by Gilles Trequesser, editing by Rosalind Russell; Reuters Messaging: gilles.trequesser.reuters.com@reuters.net ; +212-37 720065))

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CASABLANCA, May 19 /GIN, 2003 (Inter Press Service via COMTEX) -- The terrorist attacks that rocked Casablanca, Morocco's financial center, have been blamed by analysts on deprivation that makes the young vulnerable to extremist propaganda.  "The terror strikes against Morocco are neither an isolated nor an ephemeral act," Hassan Najmi, president of the Moroccan Writers Union told IPS. "They are the result of a dismal economic and social situation." A group of 14 suicide bombers attacked five locations in Casablanca usually frequented by westerners Friday, killing 41 people and injuring 100 others, the Moroccan Interior Department said. Three people from Spain, two from France and an Italian were among those who died in the attacks on a Spanish restaurant, a Jewish association, a Jewish cemetery and a hotel in downtown Casablanca.  Najmi, also a member of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces Party (USFP),says the question is what made the young bombers ready to carry out the attacks. "Take a look at the large belts of poverty, illiteracy and ignorance throughout Morocco and you will find the answer." Development indicators place Morocco well below neighboring countries like Algeria and Tunisia. Unemployment is officially running at more than 20 percent. More than 17 percent of Morocco's 30 million live on less than a dollar a day.  More than 60 per cent are illiterate. "Morocco must be prepared for more of these acts if nothing is done to improve the lot of its people," Najmi says. "Terrorists will continue to take advantage of Moroccans' poverty and ignorance to lure the youth into their culture of hatred and obscurantism." No group has claimed responsibility for the Casablanca attacks, but the Moroccan authorities say investigations points to the Attarik Al-Moustakim (The Right Path), a hard-line Islamist group believed to have close links with Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network. "All 14 individuals who carried out the attacks were Moroccans," Interior Minister El Mustapha Sahel told the media. Thirteen of the attackers died, and one was arrested. Mohamed Bensaid Ait Idder, president of the opposition Socialist Unified Left (GSU), accused political parties of failing to politically train the youth. "Political parties have left a vacuum that is now filled by the Islamists," he told IPS. Twenty-two parties are represented in parliament. But a recent poll conducted by the independent Al-Ahdat Al-Maghribya daily showed that 70 percent of Moroccan youths are not interested in politics or in political parties. The poll cited "corruption" in political parties and their "failure to live up to promises made in elections" as prime reasons for this lack of interest. A moderate Islamist party, the Justice and Development Party (PJD), now has 42 seats in the 325-member parliament. Other Islamic parties, including the Adl Wa Al-Ihssane (Justice and Charity), are tolerated but not recognized by the government. Both the PJD and the Adl Wa Al-Ihssane denounced the Casablanca attacks. The radical groups are The Right Path and the Salafiya Jihadya, which advocate "holy war against infidels." Abdelwahed Rafiki, leader of The Right Path, once described Osama bin Laden as "a hero." Mohamed Toza, an expert in Islamic movements, says Morocco's close ties with the United States and Israel "makes it an obvious target for terror attacks." The North African kingdom is one of the strongest allies of the United States in the Arab world. Home to a significant Jewish community, Morocco has for long sought to mediate between Israelis and Palestinians, and hosted several secret meetings between leaders. An audiotape released last February and attributed to bin Laden described Morocco as "ripe for liberation." Several people in Morocco like Ahmed Haddi, a waiter in a Casablanca cafe, say the U.S. is provoking such attacks through its Middle East policy. "Washington's pro-Israeli policy, its occupation of Afghanistan and of Iraq led to the Friday attacks," he says. Mohamed Bentaleb, a university student, says Morocco should "reconsider its cooperation with the U.S. to become safe from terrorist attacks. Some day the anger will explode. The Friday attacks are only the beginning."  

Copyright (c) 2003 IPS-Inter Press Service. All Rights Reserved.  

http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm?id=139w7230&Section=Countries&page=Morocco&channel=Features%2C%20Analysis%20and%20Opinion&objectid=13F83A62-8988-11D5-867E00D0B74A0D7C 

Well before the American-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, a backlash against the US was predicted by a number of politicians and observers in the Middle East and elsewhere. But those who sit back and now say "I told you so" should think again.  Although American intelligence has once again been shown to be staggeringly ill-informed - just days before the Riyadh attacks President Bush was busy saying that "Al-Qaeda is on the run," that it was "not a problem any more" - the Riyadh and Casablanca attacks are not a backlash. They are expressions of a hatred and a bigotry that encompasses far more than the US. Who precisely are the victims in this supposed backlash? In Riyadh, Saudis and Filipinos were among the dead, as well as Americans. In Casablanca, the targets were not Americans at all. The victims were almost all Moroccans, most of them Muslims. Yes, a Spanish restaurant was chosen. But the theory that it was chosen because Spain supported the invasion is clearly false. The Belgian Consulate General was also hit; yet Belgium was one of the few EU states to actively oppose the Iraqi invasion. Jews were another target. But not Israeli Jews or even American or European Jews on holiday. No, these were Moroccan Jews - Arab Jews for whom Morocco is as much home as it is for all other Moroccans. The Casablanca outrages had nothing to do with resentment over Iraq. This was about religious bigotry, a seething bitter rage among a deviant, minuscule number of Muslims against the entire non-Muslim world; and that includes all the West. A Spanish restaurant and the Belgian Consulate were targeted because they were seen as symbols of that world. The killers do not differentiate between Westerners sympathetic to the Palestinians or those supporting Israel, between Westerners opposed to the invasion of Iraq and those backing it; as far as they are concerned the only good Westerner is a dead one. Ditto Jews. Local Jews were targeted purely because of their faith. It is easy to point out the lunacy of their actions. They want to ethnically cleanse Morocco, to terrorize the country's Jews into leaving. But where are they going to go? To Israel so that they can then add numerically to the oppression of the Palestinians? A third group was targeted in Riyadh and Casablanca. Local people. In Casablanca, almost all the victims were Moroccan Muslims. But they too are seen as targets by the fanatics because they go out to restaurants, because they mix with foreigners. The real victims of such fanaticism are the Palestinians, whose dreams of freedom are set back even further every time a suicide bomb goes off. The real victims are the Kashmiris, who face increased intransigence from Delhi every time the militants attack. The real victims are ordinary Arabs. The biggest victim of all is Islam. The actions of the fanatics feed Islamophobia. They send the warped message that Islam is a religion drenched in blood. They must stop. But it is not enough to say that this is the work of a minuscule minority, that the overwhelming majority of Muslims are sickened by these attacks. It is not enough to condemn. It is not even enough to hunt them down and punish them. The world has to see that the cancer threatening the Muslim world is being cut out - vigorously so. Unless something is done, it will create a backlash of its own - against Muslims, against Islam.

The French group Renault will start producing the economical car "Dacia" in Morocco as of 2005, the weekly "La Vie Eco" reports on Friday. The Moroccan ministry of industry, trade and telecommunication and the French car-maker (Renault) have recently signed an agreement on the production of the Romanian brand Dacia, purchased by Renault in September 1999, the paper said, adding that some 220 million Dirhams ($22 million) have been invested by Morocco's car construction company (SOMACA) for this end.Under the convention, some 30,000 cars will be produced in the kingdom. Half the number will be exported and the rest marketed in Morocco at a price of 70,000 Dirhams ($7,000). La Vie Eco recalls that the convention binding Morocco to the Italian group Fiat, the first low-cost car making company in Morocco, ends December 2003, and will not be renewed. "Marketing two small cars is impossible, the paper said, quoting the department. Fiat stocks will meet the demand until 2005, then it will be relayed by Dacia."

The 2002-2003 cereal production is expected to stand at 8 million tons, which is a 59% rise as compares to last year, the department of agriculture and rural development said in a release Friday. The 2002-2003 production, one of the most important harvests over the last decade, exceeds the average recorded in the last five years by 87%, the department said. Wheat production scored a 23% rise, with 1.84 million tons, while soft wheat production reached 3.54 million tons, making 44.3% of the overall autumn cereal production. Barley production is estimated at some 2.6 million tons. This year, the surface dedicated to autumn cereal production reached 5.3 million hectares, i.e. a 15% rise in comparison with last year, and of 6% as compares with the average of the last five years. The ministry explains this good harvest by regular and sufficient rainfalls in Morocco this year

RABAT, May 20 - Morocco on Friday reassured Moroccan and foreign investors that it will take all measures to preserve the climate of confidence and guarantee the safety of people and property. The statement came in a speech by Moroccan Premier Driss Jettou at the Chamber of Advisors in the morrow of the terrorist attacks that rocked Morocco's economic and financial capital, Casablanca, last week, killing 41 people and injuring 100 others. Morocco will always be a safe haven for foreign visitors and investors, Jettou said. The results of the investigations on the terrorist attacks and the means mobilized in this connection make the government in a position to assure all citizens that "Morocco is safe of terrorism and that our homeland and our co-citizens enjoy peace, security and stability," he stressed. Twelve of the 14 terrorists involved in the attacks on Casablanca were identified, said Jettou, specifying all these individuals are of Moroccan nationality. Two of them are under custody, he said, adding investigations are going on to shed light on these terrorist attacks and their perpetrators. The Prime Minister, who recalled the instructions issued by H.M. King Mohammed VI to face up the consequences of the attacks, underlined that the Moroccan people in all its components voiced rejection and denunciation of these ignoble acts, renewing, thus, their cohesion and ability to thwart such obscurantist acts. Jettou urged all Morocco's living forces "to cement ranks and show vigilance to defend the irrevocable social project for which we all opted as a reference for the construction of our country's future." The Prime Minister lauded the sympathy voiced by all peace-loving forces towards Morocco following the terrorist acts and their readiness to help Morocco track the assailants. This terrorist act, that will be punished, will not make Morocco reconsiderthe march of openness and modernity that distinguishes this blessed country, he insisted, adding Morocco, which managed to blend modernity and authenticity, will continue opting for democracy, pluralism and human rights respect, clinging in so doing to the values of religious tolerance. © MAP 2003

Bill against Terrorism Unanimously Approved by House of Representatives' Commission

RABAT, May 21- An anti-terrorism bill was unanimously approved on Tuesday by the justice, legislation and human rights commission of the House of Representatives (lower chamber of the parliament). The bill was approved after commission members approved amendments proposed by majority parties at the parliament and deputies of the Democratic Forces Front (FFD).Minister of justice, Mohamed Bouzoubaâ, told the first Moroccan TV channel on Tuesday he considers the unanimous approval of the bill a confirmation that all the Moroccan people is against terrorism, and are sending "a crystal clear message to the authors of such criminal acts." Our country is united in the face of all hardships to defend all its democratic gains, he said. In the same regard, the commission's chairman, Abdellah Baha, stressed that regardless of diverging viewpoints on some items of the bills, Moroccans are unified when it comes to defending the country's security and values. The draft law on terrorism was first tabled before the parliament last April and the specialized commission requested more time to thoroughly examine the bill before adopting it. MAP 2003

A US trade delegation led by assistant secretary of commerce, Maria Cino, will visit Morocco and Egypt from May 25 to June 2, the US trade department announced Tuesday. The delegation comprises representatives of 11 American enterprises operating in the sectors of high-tech, engineering, environment, marketing and medical equipment. It will go successively to Cairo, Casablanca andRabat to explore business opportunities in the Middle East and North Africa.

Morocco will host the African championships of Greco-Roman, All-in, and feminine wrestling. The African wrestling confederation made the decision at the meeting here Monday of its council, on the sidelines of the 22nd continental championships. The event's agenda for the next two years and means to promote the discipline in Africa were examined at the meeting, head of the confederation, Morocco's Mohammed Ben Zouhair, told MAP. Moroccan wrestlers, Rajaa Rajib (48kg) and Ali Belkouchairi (66 kg), had won respectively a silver and a gold medal at the second African championship.

A Moroccan week-long festival will be held next June in London under the theme "Morocco Land of Wonder," in what is considered the most important Moroccan tourism and cultural event ever organized in the United Kingdom. The Moroccan national office of tourism (ONMT) in London in collaboration with Royal Air Maroc, Westminster's authorities, and other Moroccan and UK bodies will launch an important promotional campaign to publicize Morocco's tourism and cultural assets to British public. Covent Garden's two piazzas at the heart of London, that are highly visited by national and international tourists, will be turned into a Moroccan square with tents and stands where craftsmen, acrobats, music groups, artists, and epicures will inform thousands of British and foreigners aboutMoroccan products. The Moroccan week will start by a prestigious gala diner that will raise funds for charity works of the British Moroccan Society, and a fashion show tracing back the history of Moroccan traditional clothes from the 7th century.  Several Moroccan music groups will take part in the festival and sacred music concerts are scheduled in the cathedral of Saint Paul in Covent Garden to highlight the characteristics of Morocco as a tolerant country with diversified religious chants. Tents of Moroccan craftsmen will be turned to real workshops that will allow visitors to discover the skills of Moroccan craftsmen who will be manually making various items. This will be an opportunity for visitors to see the making of traditional works in several realms, particularly leather, pottery, wood-runner, ceramics, tapestry work and copper work. This prestigious event will re-launch the destination of Morocco after a stagnation period that mainly resulted from 11/9 events and war on Iraq, said ONMT's delegate to the United Kingdom, Ali El Kasmi.

Morocco donated Iraq 200 tons of food, worth some US$ 216,000, to be shipped by the UN World Food Program (PAM), part of its efforts to meet the Iraqi populations' needs, the UN news center said Tuesday. The aid, including 139 tons of rice and 58.5 tons of milk powder, will be shipped to Iraq via Jordan. PAM's Director for the Mediterranean, the Middle-East and central Asia, Khalid Adli, said the aid will contribute in the body's efforts to provide Iraqis with monthly food rations, in the framework of the UN-supervised program "food for oil." PAM has sent some 100,000 tons of food to Iraq during the five last weeks, and intends to send 50,000 tons of food. The UN body had on March 28 launched an international call to collect some 2.3 million dollars to finance its projects in Iraq. It has received 479 millions.

NEW YORK, May 22 (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's said the recent bombing attacks in Morocco were not likely to have an immediate impact on the nation's sovereign ratings, although the longer-term impact will hinge on the government's policy responses.  S&P currently has Morocco's long-term foreign currency rating at BB, two notches into "junk" territory, and its long-term local currency rating stands at BBB. Both ratings have a stable outlook. Earlier this month, a dozen suicide bombers struck mainly Jewish and Spanish targets, killing at least 29 people as well as themselves. Moroccan government ministers said the bombers were linked to international terrorism.  "The direct impact of the attacks is not, in itself, of sufficient magnitude to call into question the stability of the ratings on Morocco," S&P said in a statement. "Of more importance is the authorities' ability to put together appropriate policy responses to any economic disruption down the line." On the political front, S&P said popular support for the nation's market-oriented policies appears likely to continue, although it said the attacks could affect the pace of political liberalization. Near-term economic performance, meanwhile, could be affected by any decline in tourism and any rise in foreign investors' risk aversion, it said. ((Reporting by Susan Schneider, editing by Gerald E. McCormick; Reuters Messaging: susan.schneider.reuters.com@reuters.net ; email:susan.schneider@reuters.com ; tel: +1 646 223 6319)) 

BRUSSELS, May 21 (Reuters) - Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco pledged on Wednesday to integrate their electricity markets, a step towards linking all power grids around the Mediterranean. At a meeting of European Union and Mediterranean ministers in Athens, the countries signed a declaration of intent "to establish a integrated regional electricity market in the Maghreb region", according to a text released in Brussels.  The agreement said the countries would "implement the necessary stepst owards its (the region's power market) gradual integration into the European Union's electricity internal market". Under the pact, the countries will set up a committee that will draw an action plan before November. EU Energy Commissioner Loyola de Palacio hailed the agreement as part of a wider process of improving relations between the buyers and sellers of energy around the Mediterranean. "The integration of these markets will in time favour the putting in place of the interconnections needed to achieve the Mediterranean electricity ring," de Palacio said in a speech, referring to a plan to connect all the grids in the region. The project builds on the EU's on-going efforts to boost electricity trading within its own borders, a process that involves changes to regulatory systems and improvement of infrastructures such as interconnectors. At the same "Euro-Mediterranean" meeting, energy ministers confirmed their priority infrastructure projects for the coming years. Ministers hope to be able to channel private sector funding into the projects which include gas and electricity interconnections between countries in the region. De Palacio said she had been in talks with the European Investment Bank, the EU's financing arm, on funding for the projects. ((Reporting by Robin Pomeroy, edited by Duncan Shiels; Reuters Messaging: robin.pomeroy.reuters.com@reuters.net ; email: brussels.newsroom@reuters.com; +32 2 287 6835))

The Moroccan association for car industry and commerce (AMICA) said it is necessary to rise car production in Morocco to 120,000 units per year by 2010 compared to 18,517 in 2002 This ambition is justified by a number of indicators, particularly a 5 per cent annual evolution in the automobile market, and the under-motorization in the country where there are 1,6 million vehicles for over 32 million inhabitants, that is a car for 60 people, AMICA president, Ali Moamah, told a press conference on Monday. Moamah announced that the 2nd exhibition of car technologies and services (TEC Auto) will be held on May 21-25 in Casablanca. According to TEC Auto organizers, the automobile market in Morocco recorded in 2001 an overall volume of transactions estimated at 64,987 vehicles that were sold in 2001, including 4,500 heavy trucks, 19,641 locally-assembled cars, 28,291 imported cars and 9,500 imported second-hand cars.

RABAT, May 21 (Reuters) - Moroccan authorities could counter the brand of Islamic radicalism blamed for the Casablanca suicide bombings by widening the political spectrum to include a currently banned opposition Islamist group, analysts said.The Muslim fundamentalist association Al Adl Wal Ihsane (Justice and Charity) is allowed to operate only as charity but through rallies and activism has been the main source of popular opposition to Morocco's monarchical government for 30 years. It enjoys wide support among students and in low-income neighbourhoods, such as Casablanca's shanty town of Sidi Moumen, home to most of the 12 suicide bombers who struck in the city last week and killed at least 29 people as well as themselves. Al Adl Wal Ihsane's spokesman, Fathallah Arsalane, said the Casablanca attacks confirmed its long-held fears. "We've always said that either we allow more freedoms and lift the ban on Islamist groups, the moderate ones, or violent radicals will get through the window," he said. Nadia Yassine, daughter of the group's spiritual leader Sheikh Abdessalam Yassine, said her organisation wanted "an opportunity to preach a peaceful and tolerant Islam" distinct from that of smaller violent groups. The government said most of the bombers, whose targets included a Spanish club, Kuwaiti hotel and Jewish community centre and restaurant, belonged to a little-known Salafist group,Assirat al Moustaquim (The Righteous Path). Both Islamists and Salafists find a breeding ground for their ideas in Morocco's poor urban areas, where unemployed young people often drift into lives of crime, illegal immigration or indoctrination by radicals in illegal mosques.  

KING'S STATUS AN OBSTACLE  

Political analyst Mohamed Darif said by opening up to Islamists, the authorities could "win back the hearts and minds of those lured by Salafists". "We now face a new culture of violence... a culture that has always been rejected by Islamists, including Al Adl Wal Ihsane," he said. "Unlike Salafists, they (Al Adl) have no links with foreign parties and have always rejected violence." Noureddine Benmalek, an expert on Islamist movements, cautioned that a rapprochement between al Adl Wal Ihsane and the Royal Palace might be difficult. The group is not against the monarchy itself but opposes King Mohammed's status as Commander of the Faithful. "They are against the kissing of the king's hand and other aspects of royal protocol. But they represent the opposite to Salafist currents, and they are much more popular," said Benmalek, a journalist at Assahifa weekly. Only one Islamist political grouping is allowed to operate legally, the moderate Justice and Development Party (PJD). The PJD, whose leader Abdelkarim El Khatib is said to be close to the Royal Palace, became the main opposition party in parliament in last September's legislative elections. Al Adl Wal Ihssane, not allowed to put up candidates, urged its supporters not to vote at all. Al Adl and PJD do not share the same spiritual views and the latter is mainly popular among the educated middle class rather than Morocco's poor, Benmalek said. "Authorities can probably afford to keep Al Adl out of the political game in the medium term but not in the long term. If Al Adl takes part in parliamentary elections, they will get no fewer seats than the PJD," he said. Driss Basri, former interior minister for almost 25 years and late King Hassan's key aide, said authorities had considered allowing Al Adl political status during Hassan's rule. "King Hassan believed that Al Adl was stronger while outside the political game but he wanted it to join politics gradually, not full-scale," Benmalek said. Hassan's successor King Mohammed lifted a 10-year house arrest on Sheikh Yassine, but after the Al Adl leader strongly criticised Hassan's past rule authorities clamped down on the group's rallies and banned its two newspapers. Newspaper reports said the Casablanca attacks were triggered by a February tape purportedly of al Qaeda's leader Osama bin Laden in which he named Morocco, a staunch U.S. ally, as among countries eligible for "liberation" from Western dominance. Salafists draw their spiritual inspiration from Wahhabism, the austere interpretation of Islamic faith born in Saudi Arabia, bin Laden's birthplace. "Salafists of Assirat (al Moustaquim)... view Islamists of the PJD or Al Adl Wal Ihsane as apostates," Darif said. ((Reporting by Souhail Karam; editing by Andrew Roche. Reuters Messaging: souhail.karam.reuters.com@reuters.net; e-mail souhail.karam@reuters.com ; +212-37 726518))

RABAT, May 21 (Reuters) - A Moroccan court on Wednesday sentenced an outspoken newspaper editor to four years in prison for "insulting the king" and "undermining the monarchy". The verdict by a Rabat court caused indignation among Moroccan journalists, who had been watching the court case against Ali Lmrabet, editor of two satirical weeklies, as a test of the government's commitment to press freedom. mrabet's lawyers argued unsuccessfully that the articles and cartoons published in his French-language Demain Magazine and Arabic-language Doumane were a legitimate exercise of freedom of expression, at a time when the North African kingdom embarks on a cautious political liberalisation. The issues included an interview with a vocal opponent of the Moroccan monarchy, a satirical photomontage which lampooned government officials and an article on the Royal Court's finances. Lmrabet's lawyer, Ahmed Benjelloun, said he had lodged an appeal on behalf of his client, who was also fined 20,000 dirhams ($2,150). The court banned the two weeklies.  Amnesty International condemned the verdict, asked for Lmrabet's immediate and unconditional release and said he should not have been tried in the first place.  A spokeswoman for the London-based human rights lobby group said it considered him "a prisoner of conscience" and believed "he has the right to express himself in a peaceful and democratic manner". Morocco's press law, as amended earlier this year, has drawn criticism from human rights organisations for retaining prison sentences of up to five years for journalists and publishers found guilty of undermining the monarchy, Islam, or Morocco's claim to the disputed Western Sahara territory. Under King Mohammed, in power since 1999, the monarch and his advisers continue to exercise wide executive powers. About 20 journalists and the country's best-known comic protested outside the court as Lmrabet, who has been on a hunger strike for two weeks, was taken into custody. "It is not the individual journalist who matters. This is an attack against freedom of expression in general," said Ahmed Snoussi, who as the stand-up comic Bziz has long been excluded from Moroccan airwaves. ((Reporting by Eileen Byrne; editing by Mary Gabriel; e-mail: eileen.byrne@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: gilles.trequesser.reuters.com@reuters.net ; +212-37720065))

A newspaper editor began a four-year jail term yesterday for defaming the King of Morocco. A court in Rabat found Ali Lamrabet guilty of "insulting the King's person" and "undermining the monarchy" by publishing satirical articles and cartoons in his two weekly publications, the French-language Demain magazine and the Arabic-language Doumane. It was the first such conviction in Morocco in more than 30 years. The ruling caused anger among press freedom campaigners in Morocco, who viewed the case as a test of King Mohammed VI's commitment to political  liberalisation. Some 20 journalists and the country's best-known comedian protested outside the court as Mr Lamrabet, who had been on a hunger strike for two weeks, was taken into custody. "It is not the individual journalist who matters. This is an attack against freedom of expression in general," said Ahmed Snoussi, a comic who is barred from appearing on Moroccan television or radio. As Mr Lamrabet was led away, he referred to last weekend's Casablanca suicide bombings, saying: "The interior ministry and the DST [Moroccan intelligence] focused on my caricatures and drawings instead of looking after the security of the country." He urged journalists to "continue the fight for freedom of the press". The articles that upset the King included an interview with a critic of Morocco's monarchy, a photomontage that lampooned officials, and an inquiry into the royal court's finances. Amnesty International said it regarded Mr Lamrabet as a "prisoner of conscience". Journalists or publishers can also be jailed for undermining Islam or Morocco's disputed claim to the Western Sahara.

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/story.jsp?story=408387 

RABAT, May 23 (Reuters) - Morocco's tourism sector, the North African country's main source of hard currency, is set to grow slightly this year despite last week's terror attacks, a government minister said in an interview published on Friday. "Our goal for 2003 remains, despite the circumstances, a slight one-digit figure rise," Tourism Minister Adil Douiri told the weekly Maroc Hebdo. The suicide attacks on May 16 in Casablanca that targeted mainly a Spanish club, a Kuwaiti-run hotel and a Jewish-owned restaurant and killed 41 people, including 12 suicide bombers, shattered the Muslim kingdom's self-proclaimed image as a haven of peace and stability in the Arab world. Barely recovering from the U.S.-led war on Iraq, the tourism sector saw a 15 percent drop in the number of night-stays during the first four months of the year. A sector analyst said 2002, with a 19 percent drop in tourism receipts from 2001, was not "an objective reference". "Tourism fared badly in 2002. By comparing this year (2003) to the previous, you don't get a clear picture. Compared to 2001, things are not as bright as authorities present them," the analyst said, commenting on the minister's forecast. Tourism employs more than 600,000 people and is closely tied to the fortunes of transport and handicraft industries. "We'll take into account what happened in Casablanca and implement appropriate measures to better promote our product," Douiri added in the interview. Morocco wants to quadruple the number of foreign visitors to 10 million by 2010 and has sought tenders for five seaside resorts as part of an ambitious $4.2 billion project. Douiri said his department, which he said has not recorded major cancellations by tour operators in the aftermath of the bombings, planned to spend more money on communication. ((Reporting by Souhail Karam; Reuters Messaging: souhail.karam.reuters.com@reuters.net ; e-mail  souhail.karam@reuters.com ; +212-37 726518))

MADRID, May 23 (Reuters) - Spain said on Friday it was putting together a 300-million euro ($354 million) financial aid package for its business community in Morocco, a week after suicide bomb attacks ripped through Casablanca. A Spanish club next door to Spain's chamber of commerce was one of the targets of five bomb attacks which killed 28 people including two Spanish businessmen and a truck driver. Trade and Tourism Secretary Juan Costa announced in Casablanca that Spain would set up credit lines worth more than 300 million euros to promote social development projects and private sector businesses. Morocco is Spain's 10th most important trading partner and trade with its southern neighbour accounts for 1.3 percent of total foreign trade, the Economy Ministry said. Some 500 Spanish firms operate in Morocco and the Spanish community in the city of Casablanca alone is some 2,000-strong. The plan is due to be signed by Economy Minister Rodrigo Rato in Morocco in July. ((Reporting by Emma Ross-Thomas; Reuters Messaging: emma.ross-thomas.reuters.com@reuters.net; +34 91 585 8340)) ($1=.8487 Euro)

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Morocco has potential to become major regional economic pole, US official says

Morocco has the potential to become "a major regional economic pole," Assistant Secretary and Director General of the US and Foreign Commercial Service, Maria Cino, told MAP. While stressing Morocco's strategic geographical situation at the crossroads of Africa, the Middle-East and Europe, Ms. Cino praised the Moroccans' "enterprise spirit" as well as the Kingdom's "industrious and modern" business community.

BRUSSELS, May 23, 2003 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- The European Union (EU) said Friday that it had completed negotiations with Morocco on a scientific and technical cooperation agreement, providing new momentum for bilateral cooperation in this field. The negotiation started on April 14, 2003 and the agreement would be signed in the coming weeks, according to a press release of the European Commission, the EU executive.  The accord will facilitate the participation by Moroccan universities, companies and research centers in the EU's Sixth Research Framework Program (2003-2006) and will open up Moroccan activities to European researchers and enable a fair sharing of intellectual property rights generated by joint activities.  European Commissioner for Research Philippe Busquin would present the results of the evaluation of the Moroccan research system carried out with the EU support in the Moroccan capital city Rabat next week. European and Moroccan researchers are already collaborating in areas such as health and water. Nearly 170 joint projects have been undertaken by Europeanand Moroccan research teams mainly focusing on problems of water management, public health, information technology, environment, transport and economy.

http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm?id=143h8311&section=Countries&page=Morocco&channel=All%20Morocco%20News&objectid=22403786-8F1A-11D4-867000D0B74A0D7C 

May 22, 2003 (Daily Trust/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- Morocco has begun an ambitious tourism plan towards making the nation a competitive tourism destination by 2010. King Mohammed VI, the Moroccan Monarch, said at a recent conference that "the state and local government, as well as operators from the private sector, should make a combined effort to achieve this objective, within the framework of the regional councils for tourism and in conjunction with NGOs. In an address presented on his behalf by Prime Minister, Driss Jetton, the King said, "Our objective is to ensure that Morocco continues to be trusted internationally as a genuine, peaceful and attractive tourist destination, both in the short-term and in the long run, when we have carried through ambitious projects which are bound to stimulate the real take off of the tourism industry."  The king encouraged participants at the conference to overcome the challenges facing tourism to help make it the mainstay in the project to build a modern, competitive and open national economy. He aid that Morocco set out a period of three years to raise tourism to 'prime sector' status in the country's economy in an agreement signed between the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises. Their "vision 2010" set a target of reaching 10 million tourist arrivals by the year 2010. Similarly, the country is well on its way to achieving that goal, thanks to the government's determination in setting out a clear and defined strategy, and the strong support of King Mohammed, said Tourism Minister, Adid Douiri. WTO Chief of Market Intelligence and Promotion, Augusto Huescar who gave a presentation on tourism arrivals in 2002, stressed that although tourism is sensitive to periods of crisis, it has the power to recuperate through the diversification of services, products and offers.  

by Bayode Osakunrin Copyright Daily Trust. Distributed by All Africa Global Media(AllAfrica.com)

http://www.zawya.com/Story.cfm?id=143u6002&section=Countries&page=Morocco&channel=All%20Morocco%20News&objectid=22403786-8F1A-11D4-867000D0B74A0D7C 

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