Virtual Magazine of Morocco on the Web
Morocco Week in Review 
March 3, 2007

Study shows Morocco as model for reform in the Arab world.
16/02/2007 By Adil Dekkaki

The Center for Strategic and International Studies has published a study on political and economic reform in Morocco and the extent to which it can be considered an exemplary model for other Arab states. A study titled "Arab Reform and Foreign Aid: Lessons from Morocco" was conducted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, to evaluate the experience of Morocco in the field of economic and cultural reform. The authors of the study -- Haim Malka and John Alterman -- conducted a series of interviews with hundreds of Moroccans from various sectors, including members of the government, university teaching staff, journalists, and members of non-governmental and civil society organizations.

Evaluating reforms in Morocco
The study states that the King Mohammed VI, has embraced changes in the country's political, economic and social fields over past years. As a result, an extensive debate is currently under way in Morocco regarding democracy and power, and there is an indication that neutral reform is taking place.

The study also shows that the participation of citizens in political life has risen considerably over past years, since the scope of human rights, individual liberties and women’s rights has been widened, and journalists now are testing the limits permitted by the government in the field of freedom of opinion and expression.

There is considerable and evident consensus among different groups in Morocco that priority should be given to political reform and social change. However, the report shows that the image of Morocco is not all rosy. There is some concern over the future of the country, particularly as Morocco is suffering from difficult economic and social problems like rising unemployment, the ongoing conflict over the Western Sahara and the risk of terrorism.

The study shows the reforms that were adopted by the late king of Morocco, Hassan II, during the 1990s were all positive and noticeable developments. They did however lead to a greater consolidation of power in the hands of king than previously, instead of achieving the goal of drawing the parties and civil society organisations into the running of the country’s affairs.

The challenges and stumbling blocks experienced by the reform process and the changes in many of the Arab states over the past decades have not affected the reform process in Morocco. In the eyes of many international observers, Morocco has become an exemplary and outstanding model for Arab reform. The study attributes this to Morocco itself choosing to adopt a reform agenda, and endeavouring to obtain foreign aid, and to this reform agenda not being imposed on from the outside. Western countries efforts were not focused on launching the reform process in Morocco, but rather on encouraging a programme of reform which the Moroccan government itself originally began and pursued.

The nature of the amendments and reforms
The study indicates that it is possible to divide the latest amendments in Morocco into two basic categories. The first relates to individuals in relation to society and to the government. The amendments that were adopted within this framework include the changes to the Family Code; the formation of the Justice and Reconciliation Committee; the human development initiative; and openings in politics for Islamists and other political groupings.

The second category of reform includes the composition and functioning of the Moroccan government. Economic reforms -- privatisation, opening up economic sectors to foreign investment, relaxing the restrictions imposed on investment, reviewing the Journalism Law, and parliamentary and judicial reform -- have all been implemented.

Morocco is developing quickly with regard to reform, but the report emphasises that time will tell whether Morocco is moving sufficiently fast in this regard. It is too soon to describe the reforms adopted by Morocco as a success story -- the main indications of success will appear over the coming years.

Lessons to be learned
According to the authors, Morocco provides a valuable lesson in political and economic reform, which others in the Arab world can draw on. The Moroccan experiment in the field of reform exposes the importance of the government taking a leading role in the setting-up and managing of the reform process, since the monarchy in Morocco is the real driving force for the adoption of reforms as it made them a strategic choice for its political programme, and thus gave the process of change thrust, strength and efficacy.

The Moroccan model confirms that it is possible to adopt political and economic reform simultaneously, and that the processes of political and economic reform support and assist each other. Morocco has also proved that it is possible to accommodate Islamist movements and bring them into the political process successfully, as shown by the important experiment of the Justice and Development Party’s participation in political activities in Morocco.

An important lesson to draw from the Moroccan experiment, the study concludes, is that reform must be accompanied by a genuine domestic desire for change.
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EU plans 650 mln euros aid to back Morocco reforms. 
Fri Mar 2, 2007 BRUSSELS (Reuters)

The European Commission plans to give Morocco more than 650 million euros over the next three years to help support economic and social reforms, the EU executive said on Friday. Morocco will also be eligible for loans under the Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership project helping finance private-sector ventures.

"We are aware that reform is difficult and costly, and we appreciate the scope of the remaining challenges (in Morocco)," EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said in a statement. "For this reason, the EU will scale up its efforts to assist Morocco in its ongoing reforms." The financial package will focus on social and economic developments, human rights, the environment and institutional support. Between 1995 and 2006, Morocco received 1.6 billion euros in EU funding, the Commission said.
http://za.today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2007-03-02T120007Z_01_BAN243183_RTRIDST_0_OZABS-EU-MOROCCO-20070302.XML
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Morocco to market new malaria treatment.
Paris, March 1

Morocco will market, by next April, a new "simplified and low-cost" malaria treatment, dubbed "ASAQ" in fifteen African countries, revealed, here Thursday, Vice-president of the pharmaceutical group "Sanofi-Aventis", Robert Sebbag. The non patented three-day treatment will cost less than one dollar for adults and USD 0.50 for children. Speaking at a press conference, Robert Sebbag noted that the Casablanca factory produces currently 18Mn unit-dosed malaria treatments per year, adding that the new treatment is the fruit of a partnership between "Sanofi-Aventis" and the foundation "Initiative pour des médicaments en faveur des maladies négligées" (DNDi).

Malaria is the most important parasitic disease in the world. It kills 3,000 children every day and more than one million each year. The majority of these deaths occur among children under five years of age and pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa. The clinical disease burden is especially high among these two groups as a result of immature and weakened immunity respectively.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/box5/morocco_to_market_ne/view
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Morocco's Family Code an 'outstanding progress', US official.
Amman, March.1

The Family Code, adopted by Morocco constitutes an "outstanding progress" at the Arab and Muslim Level, said here Wednesday, the US under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen Hughes. Hughes hailed the efforts made by Morocco to protect women and children' rights, during the opening ceremony of the businesswomen leadership conference. Underlining major experiences in several Arab countries relating to promoting the status of women, president George Bush former advisor said that civil society plays a key role in that regard.

Some 100 participants from several Arab countries and the US are taking part in the two-day conference that aims to enhance the role of women in the economic activities and development process of the Arab region. The new reforms of the Family Code, that took place on October 10th, 2003 are very significant in the history of Moroccan women, in the sense that they grant equity, justice and dignity to women, who are also responsible for the progress of any given society.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/morocco_s__family_co/view
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Moroccan woman made important achievements thanks to political environment, UNFPA.
New York (United Nations), Feb. 28

The positive political environment that has prevailed in Morocco in the past decade has enabled the Moroccan woman to make important achievements, said the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). In a study on the situation of women in ten countries, the UN body described as a "giant step" the reforms introduced on the Family Code -promulgated in 2005, giving equal rights and responsibilities to the parents and enhancing the child's rights.

"During the past decade, Morocco has undertaken major reforms at the political, legal and institutional levels within the framework of partnership between the government, the different political parties and the social society," reads the study handed out to the participants in the 51st session of the UN commission on the status of the woman taking place at the UN headquarter till March 9.

On violence against women, the UNFPA hailed the "large consensus" that governed the elaboration of the national strategy for elimination of violence against women, underlining, however, that this practice remains a “social challenge” in Morocco. Based on a poll conducted on 4000 women between 2000 and 2003, UNFPA indicated that 60% of violence cases involve married women aged 20 to 49, and the same percentage concern disputes over children custody, divorce and alimony.

The two-week UN commission meeting has set the elimination of violence and discrimination against women its prime topic, the aim being to put and end to these practices that entail “devastating” effects. No less than 55 million girls have never been to school, other millions in school age work as maids, while 40% of child soldiers are girls and over 60% of the HIV positive youths aged 15 to 25 in the world are girls.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/moroccan_woman_made/view
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Mandatory Health Insurance benefits 6 million Moroccans, minister.
Rabat, Feb. 27

Some 6 million Moroccans benefit from the Mandatory Health Insurance (AMO), revealed, here Tuesday, Health minister Mohamed Cheikh Biadillah. In an interview published by the French-speaking daily "L'Economiste", the minister said that half of the beneficiaries are employees in the private sector, while 700,000 are civil servants.

Touching on the management of the Medical Assistance Regime (RAMED), Biadillah noted that some 8.5 million poor people will benefit from this program, which will be mainly financed by the State and local collectivities. With the AMO and RAMED, the overall number of the population benefiting from medical insurance in Morocco will be estimated at 50%. "Morocco ranks 37th, according to the WHO in terms of health insurance efficiency," the official stressed, adding that "94% of Moroccan children benefit from vaccination campaigns."
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/mandatory_health_ins/view
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Morocco needs more mental health professionals.
By Sarah Touahri --25/02/07

A new mental health strategy in Morocco aims to integrate mental health care into medical practice. But the country is suffering from a shortage of psychiatrists and trained professionals. A new mental health strategy in Morocco faces a shortage of mental care professionals for its implementation. The strategy, launched on February 22nd, aims to integrate mental health care into everyday medical practice. It also ends the practice of putting the homeless and drug addicts in asylums.

Jalal Toufik, the head of Morocco’s largest psychiatric hospital, Arrazi, believes the new vision will enable the government to implement a comprehensive, fully integrated and efficient mental health system which will cover promotion, prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, care and social re-integration. But this, he says, will require the availability of enough specialist staff committed to the plan and are aware of its importance.

Morocco has a total of 300 practising psychiatrists, or one per 100,000 inhabitants. In 1970, there were just two throughout the whole country. "At the moment, even with a population ignorant of mental illness which tends to resort to traditional methods, we’re still having difficulty meeting demand. Imagine if the entire population suddenly found out about our services -- it would be a disaster. There is very little provision here, much less than in neighbouring Algeria or Tunisia," Toufik told Magharebia. He said that a country such as Morocco needs more trained professionals such as psychiatrists, child psychiatrists, psychologists, child psychologists and social workers.

A few psychiatric units have already opened this year in regional hospitals in Laayoune, Essaouira, Taza and Casablanca. A child psychiatry program is currently under way in Rabat.

A 2003 national mental health survey shows that mental illness is not limited to any one specific sector or category of the population. It affects rich and poor alike, in both cities and rural areas. However, the incidence of mental illness seems to be greatest in younger people with little or no education and no job.

In the survey, carried out by the Ministry of Health in partnership with the World Health Organisation, 48.9% of those surveyed showed at least one symptom of poor mental health -- ranging from simple nervous ticks to more serious symptoms indicating more severe anxiety or depression. Psychosis was experienced by 5.6% at some point during their lifetime. Drug use is now affecting people at increasingly early ages and a clear transition is emerging from the use of hard drugs -- mainly cannabis and psychotropic drugs -- to alcohol abuse and the use of hard injecting drugs, particularly heroin and cocaine. This is happening mainly in large cities.

During the opening session of a national conference on the launch of the new mental health strategy, Health Minister Mohamed Cheikh Biadilah said that the survey results fall within the normal international range, especially when compared to those of certain western countries such as France and the United States. "However, they are not comparable with those of countries similar to our own for the simple reason that no such research has been carried out either in North or sub-Saharan Africa, with the exception of a few studies in certain cities: Algiers in Algeria, Nouakchott in Mauritania and Antananarivo in Madagascar," he stressed.
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2007/02/25/feature-02
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Rabat hosts conference on youth and drugs.
25/02/2007

A conference entitled "Youth and Drug Hell" was held on Saturday (February 24th) in Rabat as part of the national public awareness campaign against drugs. Organised by several youth organisations -- including the Youth Observatory, the Forum of the young Moroccans for the 3rd Millennium and the Association Moubadara Al Wataniya, and in partnership with the UN Development Programme and the health ministry -- the event gathered some thirty young people from Arab, African and European countries. A documentary, Drug Hell, was screened during the event. Discussions focused on subjects such as AIDS and drug, the role of civil society and the media in sensitizing youth to the dangers of drugs, and the threats of drugs in the schools. (MAP)
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/newsbriefs/general/2007/02/25/newsbrief-05
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Morocco launches plan to promote human rights. 
By Sarah Touahri 28/02/07

A new platform to promote and raise awareness about human rights has been launched in Morocco. The new plan focuses on incorporating the culture of human rights into education curricula and the minds of law enforcement and public service officers. Morocco has set in motion a five-year action plan to promote and raise awareness of human rights in the country. The plan was endorsed by the government, the National Human Rights Advisory Committee (CCDH) and nine independent human rights groups.

The Platform for Civic Action to Promote Human Rights Culture was launched on Monday (February 26th) during a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Driss Jettou and other officials and human rights activists. Jettou said the plan would establish a culture of human rights more firmly in people’s thinking, making it an everyday reality in all sectors of society. He vowed to make available all the necessary funding and human resources.

Amina Lamrini el-Ouahabi, co-ordinator of the committee responsible for the plan, told Magharebia that this was a methodological platform, concentrating on the education of future generations, the training of specialists -- particularly those charged with law enforcement-- and raising public awareness.

According to Lamrini, the platform is designed as a tool for governmental and non-governmental agencies across the country to incorporate human rights thinking into their work, to safeguard the rights and fundamental liberties of citizens.

Mustapha Chafai, who also contributed to the new programme, said that spreading a human rights culture among law enforcement and public affairs officers -- as well as educators-- is the quickest route to reaching the stated objectives. He stressed the importance of educating future generations of Moroccans in the values of human rights from an early age, through properly targeted educational programmes from primary school onwards.

Meanwhile, Amine Abdelhamid, chairman of the Moroccan Human Rights Association, called on civil society and government officials to work together to realise the goals set out in the plan. He says that without a clear mechanism to apply them, the recommendations will just be empty words.

CCDH Chairman Driss Benzekri said a monitoring mechanism is being considered to ensure the plan’s implementation within five years. A committee of government officials and rights activists will meet at the end of each year to measure progress.

The state-run CCDH proposed the platform in 2003 as part of an attempt to spread a culture of human rights more widely. The plan was devised over the years following consultations with human rights activists and government agencies.

In 1999, Morocco became the first Arab country to create a commission to probe human rights abuses since the 1960s. The government pledged last week to pay restitution to some 25,000 victims of serious human rights violations. Compensations are expected to reach 140m euros, and will be paid over a ten-year period.
http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2007/02/28/feature-01
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Fears tourism will ruin Marrakesh culture and charm.
February 28, 2007 MARRAKESH, Morocco (Reuters)

With its snake charmers, storytellers and palm trees against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains, Marrakesh was once an offbeat destination for rich or adventurous Europeans. Now hotels, holiday homes and golf courses are transforming the ancient city into a mass tourism destination, leaving some residents fearing the development may be too much, too fast.

"Tourism brings only illnesses and social deviance," said one young man in a recent survey of local attitudes. "You're wrong," interrupted his mother. "It is thanks to these people that we have bread to eat." The government wants to double the number of tourists to Morocco to 10 million a year by 2010. Last year it approved investment projects around Marrakesh worth over $2 billion. The aim is to divert some of Europe's wealth and narrow a glaring wealth gap.

Close to Europe but world away developmentally
Marrakesh may be only an hour by plane from Spain's Costa del Sol but it lies in a country that last year ranked 123rd out of 177 in the U.N. Human Development Index, which measures such factors as child mortality and health care.The city's population has doubled in two decades as droughts led to a gradual exodus from the surrounding countryside. Tourists are drawn to the old medina's narrow streets where mules and scooters jostle just yards from the trickling fountains of shaded traditional riad courtyard homes.

But veiled women sit begging near marble-clad riad hotels that cost up to 3,000 dirhams ($350) per night. Security guards are posted at the doors of new shopping malls. Foreigners have bought and restored more than 1,000 riads in the medina, creating much-needed work for local craftsmen but also forcing house prices up five-fold in 10 years. Some tourists flout travel advice and dress scantily, or sunbathe on their hotel terraces, shocking the local women hanging out their washing.

Ageing European men can be seen socializing with young Moroccan women in the city's night clubs, stirring suspicions that sex tourism is growing. Europeans complain of being hassled to buy gifts -- without realizing competition is fierce. One purchase could feed a shopkeeper's family for days.

Moderates endorse tourism, but urge respect for customs
Morocco's moderate Islamists, tipped to do well in parliamentary elections this year, say they would not reverse the government's tourism drive if elected. But they say European tourists and home-buyers must respect local customs and pay decent wages to Moroccan employees.
"Some foreign residents took maids and security guards but did not pay them proper wages, just giving them old clothes and a few coins -- they saw luxury at a low cost," said Younes Bensliman of the Islamist Justice and Development Party.

Locals worry about child sex tourism
Local activists say poverty and the breakdown of family ties leave many young people vulnerable to exploitation: Newspapers have written of street orphans lured with gifts to houses where they were abused and filmed by foreigners. "It's a growing phenomenon," Adil Abdellatif of Moroccan human rights group AMDH. "There are cases we know about but we know there are others. It's the tip of the iceberg."

Police have told worried locals that child sex tourism is not widespread and the situation is under control. Little escapes the authorities because of Morocco's traditional network of "moqaddems" -- government agents who keep a close eye on local life and pay car park attendants and cigarette sellers for information. In over 80 cases of child sexual abuse documented in Marrakesh since mid-2004 by the association "Ne touche pas a mon enfant" (Don't Touch My Child), eight involved foreigners, Abdellatif said.
MORE at http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/africa/02/28/marrakesh.reut/index.html
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Eco lodge review: Kasbah du Toubkal, Morocco.
Jen Marsden writes  2nd March 2007

It’s not every holiday that you use a donkey as your mode of transport. However, it's just one of the unique and enjoyable experiences of visiting the incredible mountaineering and relaxation retreat of Kasbah du Toubkal, an 'eco lodge' amidst the highest peaks of the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco and snow waterfalls. Travelling from Marrackech to the Kasbah, it fast becomes clear it's a world apart from the bustling medina of the former Moroccan capital.

The Kasbah's described as a Berber Hospitality Centre instead of a hotel, which sums up the welcome you receive from the thirty-strong staff that all live in the surrounding primitive hilltop villages.

The man behind this green and people-friendly wonderland is Mike McHugo, who came across the dilapidated Kasbah some 25 years ago. After developing a strong friendship with local manager Omar Maurice Ait Bahmed, they worked together to create this exclusive yet environmentally-conscious home from home. Local villagers and thirty donkeys brought all the materials required piece by piece up the mountain.

The awards and acclaim they have received – from a Highly Commended BA Tourism for Tomorrow 2002 and Responsible Tourism Award 2001 to Princes Charles using it as an example of responsible tourism – are more than justified. The water supply comes from a spring brought in from long distance under gravity feed and the underfloor heating is solar-powered.

The local roads have been re-surfaced, electricity installed in 1997 and telephones in 1999, as well as terraces, ensuring a better water supply. McHugo's next plan is the education of Berber girls through a culturally sympathetic boarding school scheme.

The success of Kasbah du Toubkal is in the detail, from the oleander branch panelled ceilings and polished plaster, to the jellabas (pointed hood smocks) and babouches (slippers) for visitors’ perusal. With the essence of rural Morocco distilled in a form fit for a king, it doesn't feel like the Kasbah has just been restored, but has a timeless charm of history combined with deep-rooted local Berber culture.

Jen stayed at the Kasbah du Toubkal for several days in January 2007. Prices start from €120 per night.
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ncl=http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L02231989.htm
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Morrocan professor sheds light on women's rights.
Annie Hamilton. The New Hampshire: Issue date: 3/2/07

Preeminent scholar Dr. Fatima Sadiqi came to UNH to talk about the women's rights movement in the Islamic country of Morocco. Sadiqi is a native of Fes, Morocco, and led a discussion Monday night in Murkland Hall to educate more people about the women's movement. Sadiqi said that most Americans seem to stereotype women of Islamic countries as "passive" and "submissive" in their male-dominated cultures. She said that Morocco has actually had a women's movement in progress since the 1940s.

This movement is somewhat outlined by the use of the four major languages in Morocco. There were two "high languages," written Arabic and French, and two "low languages," Berber and Moroccan Arabic. The high languages have written forms and are taught in schools, and the low languages are only spoken and are not taught in schools.

The written Arabic is used in religious practice, law and government, and media. In the past, women have been excluded from the high languages, and therefore left out of many cultural and social experiences. Sadiqi said that Moroccan women missed out on these practices, "not because the scripture required [it], but because their culture does not encourage them to do so."

Sadiqi said that one of the reasons the Moroccan women's movement has gotten positive attention is because the women were able to target the patriarchy without attacking Islam, the main religion.

UNH Women's Studies Professor Betsy Panico compared this aspect of the Moroccan women's movement to the first wave of women's rights movements here in the U.S.

"The women involved had to be very aware of the political and cultural scene in order to reach their goals," Panico said. "It would have been more difficult if [the Moroccan women] had placed blame [on Islam] and inflamed people who might otherwise have supported them."

Women countered this by organizing meetings to discuss the teachings of Islam. These meetings are headed by women and usually held in the home. Women are often the ones to teach children the messages of the Qur'an, a fact that illustrates the injustice of not letting women participate in the community religious practices.

Advancements in the movement thus far include women speaking Arabic and French, Berber being taught in schools, women's ability to be the head of the family along with the men, and protection for children in the event of a divorce.

The women of Morocco have been able to use the many languages of the country to demand equal rights, but other Islamic countries seem "threatened" by multilingualism.

"Diverse linguistics in a community increases the individual's potential for communication and creates a composite identity, which makes individuals more socially confident," said Sadiqi.

There is a possibility that other countries will follow suit.

"Perhaps other countries will be influenced by the Moroccan model," said Panico, "but it will be a long and difficult fight to overturn so many centuries of embedded attitudes."

The internet is introducing a more globalized view of culture for Morocco. English is becoming more popular, especially with internet communication, and is starting to compete with French as a popular spoken language.

Sadiqi has come here from the University of Fes, in Morocco. She is senior professor of linguistics and gender studies there, and has published many works involving these fields, including "Images of Women in Abdullah Bashrahil's Poetry" (2004) and "Women, Gender and Language in Morocco" (2003).

Sadiqi set up the first Centre for Studies and Research on Women and is president of the ISIS Center for Women and Development, both in Fes, Morocco. She was nominated by King Mohamed VI of Morocco to be a board member of the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (IRCAM) and was recently appointed as a member of the U.N. Economic and Social Council by the U.N. Secretary General.

Sadiqi is currently a research associate and visiting professor at Harvard Divinity School, where she focuses on women's studies in religion and Islamic studies. She is also writing a book about the religious expressions of Amizigh women.
http://media.www.tnhonline.com/media/storage/paper674/news/2007/03/02/News/Morrocan.Professor.Sheds.Light.On.Womens.Rights-2753649.shtml
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