Morocco’s King Slow to Deliver on Pro-Democracy Vows
By Aida Alami
RABAT, Morocco — A few weeks shy of his 15th anniversary as Morocco’s ruler, King Mohammed VI was spotted on the streets of Tunisia in jeans and a T-shirt while on an official visit, living up to the King of Cool nickname given to him by the foreign news media.
Back
in the kingdom, however, tensions have been rising. Pro-democracy
activists and journalists have faced increasing repression, as the
government tries to tame an opposition emboldened by the 2011 Arab
revolutions.
One
journalist, Ali Anouzla, is risking up to 20 years in jail on charges
of promoting terrorism for reporting on a video that is thought to have
been made by a militant group, Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. The
video attacked the monarchy and called for jihad in Morocco.
Another
journalist, Mustapha Hassnaoui, is serving a four-year sentence for
what the government said were his connections with jihadists in Syria.
Mr. Hassnaoui started a hunger strike in late May to protest his
detention.
Mouad Belrhouat,
a rapper who was the face of the pro-democracy February 20 Movement in
2011, is on trial on what he calls trumped-up charges of illegally
selling the state’s soccer tickets. Many activists involved with the
movement were recently sentenced from six months to one year in jail for
participating in a union protest on April 6.
In
2011, when Moroccans took to the streets, the king responded swiftly to
the growing dissent by promising a complete overhaul of past
undemocratic practices, more freedom and respect for human rights.
He
also allowed the creation of a new Constitution, a ploy that his
father, King Hassan II, resorted to seven times when facing crises
during his 38-year reign. Hassan II died in 1999.
But many say Mohammad VI’s changes are purely cosmetic. The departing United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Navi Pillay, said there was a lack of political will to carry out promised reforms, particularly human rights projects.
“Many
of the promising protections under the Constitution have yet to be
translated into reality for the people of Morocco,” Ms. Pillay told journalists
in Morocco at the end of a three-day visit last month and after a
meeting with Mohammed VI. “There are high expectations about the
positive impact of reforms, but these cannot be met until the laws are
promulgated.”
Human rights activists said there had been much fanfare but little change.
“On
human rights, Morocco is like a vast construction site, with frequent
ribbon-cutting ceremonies to inaugurate grand projects,” said Eric
Goldstein, deputy director of Human Rights Watch for the Middle East and
North Africa. “Meanwhile, authorities continue to arrest and imprison
protesters and dissidents on trumped-up charges and violently break up
peaceful demonstrations, especially in Western Sahara.”
Mr.
Goldstein added that Mr. Anouzla’s terrorism-related charges were
clearly intended to intimidate others who openly challenge the country’s
“red lines.”
But
opposition has grown significantly since the February 20 Movement,
reflecting Moroccans’ increased willingness to challenge the government.
“A
major part of the political class refused to discuss in public real
issues concerning the ills of our society, namely the role of the
monarchy, respect for human rights, the distribution of wealth and the
separation of powers,” said Marouane Morabit, 28, an activist based in
Casablanca and a staunch supporter of the February 20 Movement.
That
is different now, Mr. Morabit said, even though speaking up had fatal
consequences for his friend, Karim Lachkar, who died under mysterious
circumstances in police custody on May 27 in the northern city of Al
Hoceima.
“Karim
was a leader,” he said. “The version given by the police is confused
and contradictory and disrespectful of the family of the victim.”
Mounia
Bennani-Chraïbi, a professor of international studies at the Institute
of Poltical and International Studies at the University of Lausanne in
Switzerland, who has researched Moroccan democracy movements, said, “The
regime goes after opposition figures for common crimes, or terrorism in
the case of Anouzla, to remove their political opponent status and to
prevent them from becoming heroes.”
“Morocco
is one of those regimes that are in a gray zone — not completely
authoritarian nor democratic — where repression is done selectively and
punctually,” Ms. Bennani-Chraïbi added. “As the movement was strong and
the regime was uncertain, security forces were walking on eggshells
because they knew that massive repression is what lights the fire and
would amplify the movement.”
Still,
the authorities have no fear of targeting individuals such as Mr.
Anouzla, and Morocco’s judicial system will not prove helpful to them,
experts say.
“The state jails any activist if it wants to. Law matters little here,” said Reda Oulamine,
a lawyer based in Casablanca and the president of Law and Justice, a
group dedicated to establishing the rule of law in Morocco.
“There
is still no independent judiciary despite the new Constitution, which
was implemented to soothe the street,” said Mr. Oulamine, adding that
there had been “some progress with the creation of the brave Club of
Judges,” formed by hundreds of magistrates in 2011 to demand more
independence for the judiciary.
On several occasions the justice minister, Mustapha Ramid, has denied allegations
that the government had tortured detainees and filed trumped-up charges
against dissidents. He says the state is not responsible for individual
abuses of power.
Lawmakers
talk about addressing the judicial system’s shortcomings and expect to
introduce legislation on human rights protections in the next few weeks.
“There
is a will to reform the laws, and there has been a discussion for over a
year; these things don’t happen overnight,” said Aatimad Zahidi, a
member of Parliament. “There has already been a lot done, like to
protect undocumented migrants through a recent campaign to legalize
them.”
Experts
say the kingdom has astutely discredited the major sources of political
opposition, effectively defusing the anger and frustration of most
Moroccans. But that strategy has limits, many believe.
“The
kingdom discredited the left, trade unions, civil society and now the
Islamists,” said Mr. Morabit, the activist. “It will soon face a direct
confrontation with the people, and it will no longer have any safety
valves.”
You can read the article on the New York Times' Website.
