MAMFAKINCH - Moroccan Independent News Portal Morocco's coming elections pose a litmus test After Tunisia's historic election, it is now Morocco's turn to gear up for early polls and try to replicate that dramatic achievement in democracy. Such a feat will naturally be hard to pull off in Morocco where the population is not as motivated to vote as it was in Tunisia. Pluralities are still skeptical that the election will bring change they can believe in. Political parties have so far failed to inspire hope for real political change. The Herculean task of gaining voters' confidence and trust is amply visible in the campaign for the November 25 legislative elections. Very few Moroccans believe that Morocco's established political parties can take advantage of the opportunities that the new Moroccan political pact offers. Thus far, most political parties have failed to generate popular enthusiasm and interest. As it stands, it would be unrealistic to expect a high turnout in the November election.
eplume | « L’espace eplume a pour vocation d’être un blog collaboratif et une agora prompte à la liberté d’expression et aux échanges d’idées et d’opinion » Morocco's Next Government: New Actors, Same Script Several weeks have passed since Morocco’s most recent parliamentary elections. These yielded a victory for the Islamist Party of Justice and Development (PJD), whose leader, Abdelilah Benkirane, has been appointed as prime minister (or, as the recent constitution dictates, “Chief of Government”). Benkirane’s first task is to form a new government in conjunction with the Istiqlal Party, the Popular Movement, and the Party of Progress and Socialism, who together comprise a ruling coalition. Once this coalition drafts a list of potential ministers, it will be approved by King Mohammad VI, and then made public. However, the formation of the new Moroccan government will not be entirely determined by Benkirane. Just days after Mohammad VI officially met with him, state-media outlets were abuzz with press releases announcing the King’s selection of newly appointed royal advisers. The constitution does not specify the powers of the royal adviser or the latter’s legal limits.
Banksy Art - Artiste engagé Art terroriste anksy, agitateur social ou « art terroriste », est un artiste très engagé. La majorité de ses oeuvres sont frappantes et humoristiques à la fois. Il est pour la liberté, pour la justice, contre la guerre, la famine et tous les fléaux causés par l'homme. Anticapitaliste et pro liberté, il accompagne souvent ses oeuvres de slogans percutants, qui font réfléchir et qui décoiffent. Il adore faire l'utilisation du rat et du singe, qui semblent souvent fortement emprunter des traits humains lorsqu'il les illustre. Banksy aime détonner et pousser la réflexion et il le représente de façon très pertinente dans ses oeuvres. Un an auparavant, soit en 2004, il réalise une quantité importante de faux billets de 10 pounds. Cependant, il y remplace la reine d'Angleterre par Lady Diana et y change le « Bank of England » habituel par un « Banksy of England » significatif et lourd de sens.
Having a Conversation on Other Terms: Gender and the Politics of Representation in the New Moroccan Government The recent parliamentary elections in Morocco have led to the creation of the first ever elected Islamist government in Morocco’s history. After winning more than forty percent of the votes in the November 25th elections, the Party of Justice and Development (PJD) led by Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane formed a coalition government with the socialist Parti du Progrès et du Socialisme (PPS), the nationalist Istiqlal party and the royalist Mouvement Populaire (MP). Benkirane’s first task as Prime Minister was to form the government by appointing ministers. After much speculation and many rumors in the press and social media, Benkirane finally introduced his cabinet on January 3, 2012 at the royal palace in Rabat where he was summoned by King Mohammed VI. Official Photograph of the Benkirane Government In a statement to the press outside of the palace on the day of her appointment, Bassima el-Hakkawi expressed her discomfort and unease at being the only woman in the new government.
A Year After: The February 20 Protest Movement in Morocco On the one-year anniversary of the February 20 protest movement in Morocco, (henceforth referred to as Feb. 20), the kingdom boasts relatively meager political progress. Despite the much-vaunted reforms and constitutional changes, Morocco has reinvigorated its state edifice, managed to outmaneuver an inexperienced Feb. 20 protest movement, and engaged in a crackdown on freedom of the press and speech. In the last couple of weeks, the regime has arrested three Moroccans for crimes against his majesty’s person and “defaming Morocco’s sacred values.” In a country where the monarch is inviolable, the use of cartoons depicting the king is considered an outrage to a symbol of the country. More importantly, a year after the initial mass protests, we need to assess the record of the movement in terms of appeal and success in Morocco. The constitution does not address aspects of direly needed reforms.
Morocco, the Gulf and the media An interesting item at Angry Arab — Aljazeera and Morocco: "Yassine sent met this: "So al-Jazeera decided not to air the documentary on Morocco and the 20th of February Movement (nuqta sakhina), which they had been promoting for more than a week. Why not? Again? (In November the same thing happened (back then the al-Jazeera crew was forbidden to go to Tanger and the al-Hoceima area: two centers of the Moroccan uprising). The Emir of Qatar has a huge property in Tangier where he spends part of the summer, close to the king's own palace (and the king spends most of his summer in the north, either in Tangier or nearby Tetouan). Incidentally, two members of the February 20 movement who worked for a UAE-based TV channel (Dubai TV) were fired at the request of the minister of information last year.
Morocco's second spring | Issandr El Amrani There are cautionary tales in the Arab uprisings, as Syria has shown: not every revolution can be as successful as Tunisia's, not every aftermath is rosy. And then there are also questions raised about those places where revolution did not take place. Was it averted because there is wise and popular government, or has some kind of social shock merely been postponed? Last year Morocco seemed for a while to be following the path of its eastern neighbours. Many Moroccans were divided on this issue. Some recent events suggest that Moroccans will not be infinite in their patience as they await concrete signs that the reformist path has paid off. Their gathering pace is a cause for concern, because the global macro-economic context does not bode well. If fundamental political questions – most notably the need for truly constitutional monarchy – were at the centre of debate in 2011, in 2012 it is economic governance that will dominate.
From Opposition to Puppet: Morocco’s Party of Justice and Development A protest repressed, a journalist beaten, an artist detained, a newspaper censored, and an activist tortured. Sixteen months after what was hailed as a “landmark” constitutional referendum, and exactly one year after a new government was elected, like a broken record, headlines from Morocco continue to repeat themselves. When the announcement for the 25 November 2011 parliamentary elections was made, the February 20th Movement and its supporters quickly agreed to boycott––a decision rooted in the prediction that the elections would bring about no real change. A year after the elections that gave the Party of Justice and Development (PJD) a majority win, the “path of reform” promised by the regime has yet to take off. The November 2011 elections, which were initially scheduled for the following year, were seen by many observers as the first test to the constitutional reforms introduced by the king. Though not all the blame should be placed on the monarchy.