Virtual Magazine of Morocco on the Web
Morocco Week in Review 
December 3 , 2005

World AIDS Day: Over 17,000 HIV positive, 1839 full-blown AIDS case in Morocco.
Action against AIDS: Sidaction 2005 to be held on Dec. 2-15.
AIDS association chairwoman alarmed at the pandemic spread among women.
OPALS President: AIDS cases in Morocco on the increase.
Japan pledges 10 bn yen in development assistance to Morocco.
Morocco 'land of tolerance, civilization and healthy conviviality,' Argentina Great Rabbi.
Social work: INSAF starts campaign against child labour.
Latifa Bennari: To prevent child abuse, listen to paedophiles.
US NGO grants medical equipment to Moroccan neonatology center.
Morocco gets first marrow-transplant facility.
What Happened to the FTAs?
Morocco: After Truth Commission, State Must Address Persistent Impunity.
2M produces documentary on caves in Morocco.
7 years in Morocco: Author tells stories.

World AIDS Day: Over 17,000 HIV positive, 1839 full-blown AIDS case in Morocco.
By Karima Rhanem 12/1/2005 Casablanca

As the globe marks the World AIDS Day on Dec. 1, new HIV infections have surged in Morocco making the number of full-blown AIDS cases reach 1839. The Moroccan Ministry of Health said the number of HIV positive in the country ranges between 16,000 and 25,000. Several associations working in the field of HIV prevention are alarmed at the spread of AIDS among women. Today, in Morocco and worldwide, women are at the highest risk for contracting HIV/AIDS. In 1988 the percentage of Moroccan women living with AIDS was 8 %; in 2005 the number increased to 38 %.

Among the HIV-positive Moroccan women, 65 % have been infected by their husbands. The majority of these women were virgins at the time of their marriage and, on average, ten years younger than their husbands. They are primarily illiterate and unskilled workers or housewives.

There are numerous other reasons that compound to make women particularly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. The fear of discrimination and embarrassment is a major factor that prevents many women from accessing HIV information, from getting blood test and seeking treatment. Another huge problem is that women find it difficult to access adequate healthcare because of the strong taboos around the subject of sexually transmitted diseases.

Aware of the danger of AIDS, Morocco has declared the fight against it a national cause. 2M channel along with the ALCS (Association Marocaine Contre le SIDA) joined in forces to organize the biggest ever communication campaign against AIDS, called Sidaction Maroc 2005 from Dec. 2 to 15. Sidaction is an unprecedented event in Morocco and the MENA region, and the first of its kind to raise funds to fight against the spread of AIDS.

During the anti-AIDS campaign, 2M is scheduling debates, reportages and a 5 hour evening show including a telethon to raise funds for the fight of AIDS.

Anti-AIDS associations, war of words

However, this important event has stirred other AIDS control associations' disappointment. This event has brought to light the 'war' between the ALCS and the network of anti-AIDS associations.

Himmich, ALCS president, stressed that there is no war between anti-AIDS associations concerning the aid given by international organizations to fight against the disease. She added that this financial assistance is given to the Ministry of Health by the Global Fund to Fight Tuberculosis, Malaria and AIDS, which allocates the aid to all the associations working in the field.

Evoking the question as to why other anti-AIDS associations were not invited to the telethon, Himmich said that they were invited but they centered their attention to the aid more than the telethon itself.

However, the network of anti-AIDS associations seems not to agree with what Himmich said. Abdessamad Oussayh, president of AMJCS (Association Marocaine des Jeunes Contre le SIDA) told Morocco Times the conflict of the associations over financial support does not serve the cause of the fight against AIDS.

"This conflict will have a negative impact on HIV positive and AIDS patients who will lose confidence in these associations," Oussayh said.

"We have been in the field for 12 years now, and our concern is to serve the health of the Moroccan youth, and not to fight for aid. We have done many anti-AIDS related projects with very limited or no means. The issue is not about financial assistance. Rather, we disagree on the way ALCS has proposed our participation in the telethon," he added.

Oussayh stressed that the network of associations, in which AMJCS is part of, has refused to mislead the public that there is no conflict or no coordination between the anti-AIDS associations. He said that the only time they meet is at the Ministry of Health when they discuss the UNAIDS programme. Oussayh said "we are also actors in the filed and not marionettes."

Nadia Bezzad, president of the Pan-African Organization Against AIDS (OPALS) said that three anti-AIDS associations including hers did not accept to participate in the Sidaction campaign because they refused to play the role of a puppet for ALCS.

"Sidaction campaign as known worldwide is a national campaign which knows the participation of all the actors working in the field of AIDS prevention.
We at the network, which includes along with 24 associations, three anti-AIDS associations refused to be just a puppet for one association. It is absolutely not because of the issue of aid," Bezzad explained.

Bezzad stressed that the network of associations was opened to everybody who wanted to join in. "Our colleagues in ALCS had a different vision when they refused to join in, may be because they weren't the initiators of the idea.
But we are still open to anyone who can help in the fight against AIDS in our country, and that's the most important thing," she said.

OPALS, LMLMST, AMJCS have joined the network of non governmental organisations working on fighting the spread of AIDS in Morocco on Jan. 21, 2003. This network unites now about 26 associations, engaged in the social, medical and cultural development field.

It aims at allowing the exchange of experiences and the coordination of their activities.

To achieve their objectives, the associations fighting AIDS have implemented many strategies to inform people about AIDS. These include, identifying and utilizing communication networks, training field workers, locating and mobilizing opinion leaders, activating link persons, establishing rotating peer group discussions, and providing information and supplies at meetings.

Despite their limited budget, the network has fulfilled some of its objectives, including awareness-raising campaigns.

The major associations working in the field of fighting AIDS in Morocco include ALCS, the first association set up in 1988 in the Maghreb and the Middle East to combat AIDS; OPALS, set up in 1994 by a group of doctors, professionals in the health sector and social science instructors to combat the spread of AIDS; and AMJCS, created in 1993 by a group of young Moroccans to fight against AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STI).

AIDS still taboo subject in Morocco

Despite the efforts made by the Ministry of Health and non governmental associations to raise awareness about the danger of AIDS, HIV is still an issue surrounded with stigma and taboo. People do not talk openly about friends or family members who might have died from AIDS. AIDS is perceived by many as a disease of "the others", a disease which comes from outside.
The message "Fidelity or condoms" has been widely used. However, it has hindered the generalization of the use of condoms, because asking for a condom consequently implies distrust of the partner.

According to many organizations working in the field of AIDS prevention, condoms are the only efficient solution for vulnerable groups who are at risk to protect themselves from sexually transmitted illnesses. However, for many Moroccans and Muslim religious leaders, the distribution of condoms encourages sexual misconduct.

The gist of religious teachings in this respect is that religion encourages and advocates marriage and prohibits all other alternatives for sexual enjoyment. Religion also prescribes the preservation of the human rational faculties and prohibits the use of all kinds of substances, such as drugs and narcotics that may impair them, regardless of the manner in which these substances are taken or administered. Religion also urges cleanliness to protect human beings from risks of infection by destructive diseases, the most dangerous of which, in this day and age, are sexually transmitted diseases, and AIDS in particular.

At the time of the prophet, Muslims, both men and women, were never too shy to ask him about everything, including such private affairs as sexual life, so as to know the teachings and rulings of their religion. They asked the prophet directly, or through his wives, and this proved that sexual matters were not taboo but were fully acknowledged and respected. "Shyness is part of the faith" as the prophet taught, but he also taught "There is no shyness in matters of religion," even involving the intimate aspects of sexual life.

It is recognized that the level of education about sexuality and health in Morocco and other Arab and Muslim countries is much lower than in many other parts of the world. Conversations on sexual relations are always shrouded in embarrassment, which prevents frank discussion and leads to ambiguity.

HIV/AIDS is a critical problem among young men and women. Young people today are marrying later than the older generations but are starting sex very early. Despite the risks, few young men use condoms the first time they have sex. Young unmarried people often do not consider the long-term consequences of current actions, and they take more risks, often thinking "it can't happen to me." These young people need guidance, encouragement, and access to condoms.

Sexual education is essential within the appropriate considerations of age and educational standards; it must be complementary to health education and religious instruction. A balanced blend of these interrelated disciplines must be devised, with the ultimate aim of achieving a physical and spiritual balance compatible with the prevailing cultures and traditions of the country.

It is not shameful to talk about AIDS and sexual health, and every AIDS infected person has the right to adequate treatment. Patients must be made aware of how to prevent both the deterioration of their health and the infection of others. Religions do not allow the exposure of patients to discrimination, disgrace or neglect, for whatever reason and no matter how their infection has occurred.

5 million newly infected in the world in 2005

The Aids epidemic has claimed 3.1 million lives in 2005 and more than half a million were children, a UN report said. Close to five million people were newly infected with the virus in 2005, the annual UNAIDS/WHO Aids epidemic update said recently.

The total number of people with HIV has reached an estimated all-time high of 40.3 million, the report said. The number of people living with HIV has increased in the past two years.
Sub-Saharan Africa remains hardest-hit, and is home to 25.8 million people with HIV, almost a million more than in 2003. Two-thirds of all people living with HIV are in sub-Saharan Africa, as are 77% of all women with HIV.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=11288 
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Action against AIDS: Sidaction 2005 to be held on Dec. 2-15.
By Kaoutar Tbatou

The Moroccan Association against AIDS (l'association marocaine de lutte contre le Sida), known by its French acronym ALCS, is organising a national campaign entitled "Sidaction 2005" to raise awareness of the dangers of AIDS and collect funds to fight the disease. The event, organised under the high patronage of HM King Mohammed VI, will be held on Dec. 2-15. The goal of the campaign is to collect funds to provide psychological and financial support for persons infected with AIDS.

The collected funds will also be used to promote preventive means against the disease, raise public awareness of its dangers, make blood test centres available for as many persons as possible, and eradicate the marginalisation faced by HIV carriers.

"We have achieved very positive results in Morocco in terms of awareness raising. The number of persons visiting blood test centres has considerably increased," Hakima Himmich, president of the ALCS told Morocco Times.

"But the disease is still threatening Moroccans, as it threatens people around the globe. This is why we have to carry on the struggle against it," she added.

The campaign will include a telethon to be held on Dec. 9 and broadcast on the Moroccan TV channels 2M, and RTM, as well as the satellite channels 2M Maroc and Al Maghribya. It will also be transmitted on 2M Radio Station and the National Radio Station.

The wide media coverage of Sidaction 2005 will help increase the funds collected and help organisers' message reach a larger audience. The telethon will include debates on the issue, documentaries, and varied art shows.

It will be attended by Moroccan stars of music, cinema, and sports, namely comedian Gad El Maleh, athlete Hicham El Guerrouj, rugby player Abdellatif Benazzi, actor Rachid Louali and singer Naima Samih.

Lebanese singer Walid Taoufik and Egyptian actor Yahiya Fakhrani will also be among attendees. The debates will see participation of prominent specialists in AIDS, including Peter Piot, ONUSIDA director, Michel Kazatchkine, France's ambassador on AIDS and Transmissible Diseases, and Pier Bergé, president of Sidaction France. A free phone number (08000.2005) will be made available to receive donation promises.

Donations can be received in all bank and post offices in cash, by check, or by transfer. Supporters can also donate by sending sms messages to the number 5225.

The number of HIV-seropositive persons in Morocco has been estimated to range from 16,000 to 20,000. Almost 50% of them are women. Statistics conducted in 2005 have also revealed that 38 million adults (15-49 years) and 2,3 million children (less than 15) are currently living around the globe with the HIV.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=11286 
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AIDS association chairwoman alarmed at the pandemic spread among women.
Casablanca, Nov. 30 

Chairwoman of the « Association de Lutte Contre le Sida » (ALCS), Hakima Himmich, is alarmed at the spread of Aids among women, for the pandemic growing infection rate went up from eight pc in 1988 to 38% in 2004. She is especially worried about the increase of Aids infection in the Agadir region, Western Morocco, which she said is higher than in the big city of Casablanca, north-west.
Pr. Himmich called for backing her association to help it conduct efficiently its awareness and Aids infected people support mission and making donations to the "Sidaction Maroc 2005" campaign on December 2 through 16, sponsored under the patronage of King Mohammed VI in cooperation with the « 2M » TV channel and other partners.

Health Ministry figures show 16,000 to 20,000 people are HIV positive in Morocco, according to data distributed at an ALCS press conference Tuesday in Casablanca held on the occasion of the launching of the campaign. ALCS chairwoman said 1,300 Aids sick people are taken charge of by her association and care means are running short. During the anti-Aids campaign, 2M is scheduling debates, reportages and other music and awareness shows and a 5 hour soirée including a telethon to raise funds in favor of the fight of Aids.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/aids_association_cha/view 
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OPALS President: AIDS cases in Morocco on the increase.

"AIDS cases in Morocco are increasing year after year," confirmed Wednesday the President of the Pan-African Organisation against AIDS, Nadia Bezad. In an interview published by the French-speaking daily Aujourd'hui le Maroc, Bezad said that in 2005, over 17,719 people are HIV-positive in Morocco including 1,839 full-blown AIDS cases.

She stressed that heterosexual relations are the main cause of the transmission of the virus, adding that 'non protected sexual intercourse and ignorance contribute a great deal to the spread of the disease. According to Bezad, women are more and more vulnerable to AIDS. "The disease increasingly affects women, because of their abstaining from using means of protection,"
she said.

The French language daily also said that the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria offered USD 9 million to Morocco to fight the phenomenon.

"Annually, 350,000 new cases of sexually transmissible diseases are registered. As far as AIDS is concerned, Over 16,000 people are HIV-positives in Morocco. Those under 40 years old are most affected by the epidemic," underlined Bezad.

The first infection was detected in 1986 in Morocco. The number multiplied to reach 165 in 1999 and 205 in 2005. Statistics have shown that 76% of contamination is due to multiple heterosexual relations. About 4% of cases are drug addicts. About 84% of infections are registered in urban areas and 12% in rural areas.

Moroccan civil society is mobilized to join the fight against AIDS. In addition to their many activities on the ground, associations have played a significant role in behavioural change communication.

HIV is one of the biggest social, economic and health problem standing as an obstacle to the development of the world. It is considered to be a global emergency claiming over 8,000 lives every day.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=11300 
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Japan pledges 10 bn yen in development assistance to Morocco.
Tokyo, Nov. 29 

Japan has pledged 10 billion yen in development loans and grants to Morocco under several cooperation accords signed part of King Mohammed VI official visit (Nov. 27-30) to the Asian country. The aid includes 9.46 billion in loans for sewage and rural power projects as well as a 500 million yen grant not tied to any project, according to Japan's Foreign Ministry. Japan committed up to 46.1 million yen for sound, lighting and audiovisual equipment for Morocco's National Library.

The two sides also signed an agreement on political consultation and the promotion of cultural exchanges. In addition, they decided to suppress visas for holders of diplomatic and services passports, to be in force starting from January 2006. King Mohammed VI co-presided the signing of the accords with Japanese prime Minister, Junichiro Koizumi. The Moroccan monarch, who held talks Monday with the Japanese emperor, has extended orders of honor to several Japanese and Moroccan figures for their contribution to the strengthening of bilateral relations. The king paid on Tuesday a courtesy visit to the Japanese parliament where he met with the speakers of the House of Representatives and House of Advisors.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/box1/japan_pledges_10_bn/view 
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Morocco 'land of tolerance, civilization and healthy conviviality,' Argentina Great Rabbi.
Buenos Aires, Dec. 1 

The kingdom of Morocco is a land of tolerance, civilization and healthy conviviality, Great Rabbi of Argentina, Salomon Benhammu said here Wednesday. Benhammu's statement came at the closing session of the "Latino-American Days on Sephardi world in its cultural diversity." "We are proud of our culture and of the healthy conviviality that prevails nowadays" in Morocco, said Benhammu who gave a general historical view on Judaism in Morocco since more than two millennia.

The event was kicked off on November 2 at the initiative of the Center for Research and Diffusion of the Sephardic Culture (CIDICSEF). It featured conferences, art exhibitions, and musical shows. Participants discussed different topics including "The Beliefs and Rites linked to the Brit-Mila" (circumcision), "Jews in Morocco: one of the most ancient stories of Judaism and Diaspora," and "Spirituality among Jewish communities of northern Morocco."
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/world/morocco__8216_land/view 
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Social work: INSAF starts campaign against child labour.
By Bachir Niah

The Moroccan National Institution for Solidarity with Women in Crisis, known by its French acronym INSAF, has launched a campaign against child labour, themed "Child labour kills. It kills their childhood." The campaign, to which utilities company Lydec, the national office of electricity and many other associations have contributed, aims at sensitising as many citizens as possible, all over Morocco, about the dangers to this phenomenon.

"We would like to paste our posters on the M'dina buses. The Casablanca bus company has given us its assent; we are just waiting for sponsors," said Meriem Othmani, the president of the INSAF.

Set up in 1999, INSAF is a non profit association, comprising doctors, lawyers, architects, and other professionals.

So far, INSAF has circularised 70,000 posters denouncing child labour, and more than two million others will be distributed later in different cities.

The Ministry of Employment and Vocational Training expressed support for this campaign. It issued a release urging the inspectors of the CNSS, the Moroccan social security fund, to report any case of child exploitation.

The Ministry of Education's delegates in Casablanca have also joined the effort to ensure the operation is a success. The first step in this cooperation has been registered in Sidi Bernoussi, Casablanca, where schools have set up vigilance cells to report any case of a child taken from school to work.

"Our campaign comes as part of our fight against child labour. But, we are aware that we have to save child by child if we want to eradicate this phenomenon," admits Othmani.

Through this campaign INSAF intends to save exploited children, especially little girls, who are being increasingly used as maids and ill-treated. The starkest example is little Halima who, as Moroccan newspapers reported, was about to throw herself from the third flour to escape torture.

"Our priority is little girls employed as maids. First, we are targeting maily the regions of Taza and Marrakech, where INSAF's members are currently active," explained the president of the association.

Earlier this year, the Moroccan Ministry of employment estimated the number of children working throughout the Kingdom at about 600,000, representing 11% of the country's children.

A recent study jointly carried out by the Moroccan Ministry of Employment, the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (Ipec), Unicef and the World Bank indicated that the age of working children varied between 7 and 14.

The survey was part of Understanding Children's Work (UCW), a programme aimed at drawing up strategies to wipe out the child labour phenomenon.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=10973 
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Latifa Bennari: To prevent child abuse, listen to paedophiles.

"Pédophilie: prévenir pour protéger" (Paedophilia: prevent to protect) is the title of the book which has ignited many debates on the methods taken by the author Latifa Bennari, to handle the subject which has long been a taboo. Latifa Bennari, president and founder of "L'ange Bleu" (the Blue Angel), a France-based association to fight child abuse, did not only report real stories revealed by children subjected to maltreatment, but also brought to light a new method to prevent the phenomenon. Based on her long experience in the field, she suggested "let us listen to paedophiles!"

The author suggests that the best way to prevent this sexual crime is to exploit the paedophile's feeling of shame and culpability to prevent them from passing into action.

However, Bennari's courageous idea was not applauded by all. Some showed disgust, as it is not easy to accept that by listening to paedophiles, children could be protected from the abuse.

"I suggest turning the scales of violence with an attentive ear," she explained. Though her idea was not wholly accepted, she could impose it anyway. Bennari is now an active and militant partner for institutions and associations concerned with the phenomenon.

She is calling, through the Blue Angel association, all children who have been victims of this social illness, as well as people who suffer abnormal attractions towards children, to turn to the association for a better prevention of the social illness.

Victim of the same abuse, Bennari, instead of isolating herself and damning society for the rest of her life, made of that sad and traumatizing experience a source of energy.

At the age of six, she had suffered eight long years of sexual abuse from her father's employee. She was brave enough to face her ordeal and exorcize her sufferings by helping other victims.

Nevertheless, she always stresses the difference between paedophiles and sex offenders. "People often tend to confuse pedophiles with sex offenders. It is necessary to start by removing this confusion and accept the existence of abstinent paedophiles who have never cross over into action, and collectively work for the protection of children," Bennari explains.

"To listen and to afford psychological support to people with paedophile attractions will help those individuals overcome their own sufferings, control their attractions and prevent them from putting their intentions into actions," Bennari added.

She summarised her approach by saying "the more paedophiles are treated, the less sex offences there will be."
http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=11&id=10872 
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US NGO grants medical equipment to Moroccan neonatology center.
Rabat, Nov. 28 

The US neonatology NGO "Operation USA" donated, Monday, several medical equipment to the national neonatology center of the child hospital in Rabat. The equipment include incubators, electric hot tables, pulse oximeters, scopes, intensive care devices, as well as a special child bed. The US ambassador in Rabat, Thomas Riley, who attended the donation ceremony, also inaugurated a USD 125,000-study room in the Ibn Sina Hospital designed for medical students.
http://www.map.ma/eng/sections/social/us_ngo_grants_medica/view 
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Morocco gets first marrow-transplant facility.
Rabat, Morocco, 11/30 

Morocco on Tuesday inaugurated at the haematology and paediatric oncology section of the "20 August" hospital in Casablanca its first marrow-transplant for both children and adults. Princess Lalla Salma, King Mohammed VI`s wife and chair of an Anti-cancer Association, officially opened the facility, official sources told PANA here. This four-bed capacity unit, which can handle 15 transplants per year, requires highly trained personnel and costs between 50,000 and 200,000 euros in Europe, depending on the nature of the surgery.

Morocco`s Health Ministry in partnership with "Agir", a local Association, initiated the project, whose cost is 600,000 euros. The contribution of the "Lalla Salma Anti-cancer Association" to the onco-haematology division includes medico-technical equipment and beds, as well as the necessary equipment for a classroom where children could continue their schooling and take advantage of the recreation facilities during their treatment.

The haematology and oncology section, having children and adults` units and a daytime hospital has a capacity of 37 beds. It has a medical staff of 59 members including 4 professors, 13 resident medical doctors (MD), and 14 Registered Nurses.
This section receives annually about 1,200 patients from various regions of the kingdom. It performs 2,947 medical acts, 2,889 blood transfusions, and 5,913 chemotherapy operations.
http://www.angolapress-angop.ao/noticia-e.asp?ID=395704 
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What Happened to the FTAs?
Volume 79 December 2005

Recent difficulties in the implementation of Morocco's free trade agreement with the UAE have raised questions regarding the kingdom's readiness for trade liberalisation. They might also further delay the entry into force of more crucial free trade deals. A recent meeting between Moroccan and UAE officials evidenced hitches in the implementation of the free trade area between the two parties, which came into force in July 2003.

There have been mounting complaints from Moroccan businesses that the free trade area has been detrimental to their interests, especially because of a lack of clarity in the rules governing its application.

While Moroccan entrepreneurs have traditionally been tempted to delay - and sometimes to derail - the entry into force of free trade agreements simply in order to maintain their national market under protection, in this case their claims appear to be fairly well grounded.

The first serious incident took place a few weeks ago, when a local importer, Stock Pralim Ltd., broke fresh ground by defeating Nestlé Morocco in a tender to provide the kingdom's armed forces with powdered milk.

Nestlé Morocco, the armed force's regular supplier, was prompt to raise objections against what it deemed to be unfair competition.

Although the free trade agreement provides for the abolition of excise duties on milk derivatives, Moroccan customs blocked the first delivery, worth $540,000, requiring the importer to pay the normal duties. The reason for this decision was that the rule of origin was not respected.

Indeed, the agreement between Morocco and the UAE stipulates that the abolition of excise duties is applicable only for goods that incorporate at least 40% local value-added. Nestlé Morocco has argued that Emirati powdered milk could not fulfil this criteria, since it originates in New Zealand.

The managers of Stock Pralim Ltd. should soon be attended by high-level executives at the Ministry of Foreign Trade to try and solve the dispute.

The same issue arose in the sugar market when Moroccan food-processing industries concluded a supply deal with the UAE's Khalij Sugar, hoping to increase their competitiveness against EU producers, which can supply confectionary products 10-20% cheaper than local producers due to the high price of sugar on the Moroccan market. Morocco's state-owned sugar producer, Cosumar, charges $0.60 a kilo, while Khalij could supply it for less than half this price.

Based on the same rule of origin, Moroccan customs charged importers a 120% duty, thus inflating the cost of imported sugar to $0.63. Confectioners cried foul, arguing the measure was aimed at artificially protecting Cosumar against foreign competition.

Challenged on its commitment to free trade, the Moroccan government has blown hot and cold. While acknowledging it couldn't conclude free trade agreements only to block their implementation, Mezouar underlined that the UAE had moved back six months the meeting of the technical commission in charge of examining the agreement's applicability, citing the lack of availability of relevant trade representatives. Finally, Morocco established that the commission's meeting will be held before the end of 2005.

In both of the above cases, although the UAE imported the raw material, documents issued by the Emirati Ministry of Economy and ports authority establish that the finished products integrate over 40% local value-added - a fact Moroccan producers resolutely challenge. The Moroccan Ministry of Trade and Industry explains that it does not question the authenticity of these documents, but simply follows routine monitoring procedures.

Whatever the outcome of the rule of origin dispute, the controversy has drawn attention to one of the most serious caveats free trade agreements impose upon countries such as Morocco, where internal market distortions tend to hamper the competitiveness of local producers.

Sugar is the perfect example of the liberalisation conundrum Morocco is facing. Lifting trade barriers would endanger the local sugar industry, while maintaining them is endangering domestic processing industries, which are at pains to compete against rivals that benefit from trade liberalisation, especially in the form of cheaper inputs.

The problem is even more acute with wheat. The high price of this commodity on the domestic market, due to higher local production costs and 105 to 115% duties on imports, makes it all but impossible for local producers of pasta and couscous to hold their own against foreign competitors.

Moroccan trade officials seem to have underestimated this crucial issue, which might explain the current vagueness of the government's position in this respect.

Many of the country's most sensitive markets, however, are poised to be affected by a series of free trade agreements with Arab countries in the framework of the Agadir process. This aims at establishing a free trade area between the Arab Mediterranean nations, and with this on the horizon, the Moroccan government will have to address this challenge soon - and with vision.

Indeed, failure here might jeopardise the implementation of the free trade deal the kingdom concluded with the US in mid-2004. Initially scheduled for July this year, its entry into force has already been postponed to an unspecified date in 2006, thus upsetting a number of Moroccan exporters, who had invested in order to take advantage of the preferential access to the US market. These exporters are already complaining this delay is depriving them of orders worth some $50m.

With the implementation of another important free trade agreement with Turkey also shelved, it is high time for Morocco to come up with a clear and inclusive vision of its foreign trade policy - and to stick to it.
© Oxford Business Group 2005
http://www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com/weekly01.asp?id=1708 
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Morocco: After Truth Commission, State Must Address Persistent Impunity.
28 Nov 2005 Source: Human Rights Watch (Rabat, November 28, 2005) 

The government of Morocco must act now to end impunity for the security forces and enhance judicial independence if it is to cement the legacy of the country's truth commission, Human Rights Watch said in a new report http://hrw.org/reports/2005/morocco1105/  released today. After nearly two years of investigations into abuses committed between 1956 and 1999, the state-appointed Equity and Reconciliation Commission (ERC) is to submit its final report and recommendations to King Mohamed VI at the end of this month.  Morocco's commission, the first of its kind in the Mideast and North Africa, represents a historic step in acknowledging the violations committed during the 38-year reign of the late Hassan II, - including hundreds of cases of "disappearances," and thousands of arbitrary detentions.

The ERC, which has reported receiving between 25,000 and 30,000 applications for compensation, will determine the forms and amounts of reparation the state is to provide victims. "The ERC seems to have done a serious job of excavating past abuses and of honoring victims," said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East and North Africa division. "But it is now up to the state to ensure an important aspect of providing reparation: taking steps to ensure that what the victims suffered can never happen again in Morocco."

Moroccan authorities have presented the ERC as a keystone in the process of consolidating democracy and the rule of law. But this claim is clouded by continuing patterns of human rights violations, despite the overall advances over the last fifteen years. Authorities continue to prosecute journalists for critical writings and to break up peaceful demonstrations. Arbitrary arrests continue of suspected independence activists in the disputed Western Sahara. And in the wake of the 2003 suicide bombings in Casablanca, Moroccan security forces rounded up hundreds of suspected Islamists and subjected them to ill-treatment during interrogation. The men were sentenced to prison terms after unfair trials.

If today's abuses are not on the scale of those committed in the 1960s and 1970s, they show that the mechanisms facilitating the earlier violations - security forces acting with impunity, courts that lack independence, and repressive legislation - are hardly a relic of the past. These ongoing abuses fall outside the ERC's mandate, but they weigh on its task of recommending ways to prevent abuses in the future.

The ERC's full report will go to the king. It is not yet known how much of it will be made public. The ERC has been investigating not only the general history of repression in Morocco but also individual cases, notably the hundreds of persons whom the security forces "disappeared" in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s and whose fate remains unknown. One measure of the ERC's success will be the extent to which it provides families concrete information about the fate of their "disappeared" relatives.  Another test of the ERC will be its stance toward the impunity of those who committed grave abuses in the past, whose ranks reportedly include some who hold government posts today. While the ERC is barred from publicly naming perpetrators, it should advocate that authorities charge or sanction perpetrators of grave violations when the evidence warrants, Human Rights Watch said. The ERC should also disclose publicly the extent to which past and present officials cooperated in its investigations, and to disclose the impact of any non-cooperation on its search for truth.

In its 48-page report, entitled "Morocco's Truth Commission: Honoring Past Victims in an Uncertain Present http://hrw.org/reports/2005/morocco1105/ ," Human Rights Watch directs most of its recommendations to Moroccan authorities, who are the ones ultimately responsible for safeguarding against future abuses and fulfilling the right of past victims to compensation. Authorities should:

* Direct a high-level office to monitor and evaluate, in a public and ongoing fashion, the state's implementation of the recommendations made by the ERC. 
* Commit to providing a public response to each of the ERC's recommendations, specifying a plan and timetable for compliance, or an explanation why the government does not intend to comply. 
* Ensure that all evidentiary material collected by the ERC is turned over to judicial authorities, in contemplation of bringing charges where the evidence warrants. 
* Bring to justice those individuals identified by the ERC as having committed grave human rights violations, where sufficient evidence exists to bring them to trial. 
* Refrain from declaring any amnesty or similar measures that would exempt from prosecution persons implicated in carrying out "disappearances" or other grave violations of human rights; any eventual measures of clemency should come after individual responsibilities have been established, not before. 
* Consider extrajudicial sanctions, such as dismissals from posts, for public officials against whom solid evidence exists of participation in grave abuses, where the post they occupy enables them to continue to violate the human rights of others. 
* Publicly remind victims and their beneficiaries of their continuing right to obtain redress from courts, which has not been compromised by the existence of the ERC or by their acceptance of reparations from the ERC. 
* Ensure a legal and administrative framework that preserves, and ensures easy public access to the archival material generated by the ERC, except that which should legitimately remain classified. 
* Acknowledge that grave human rights abuses in the period under study by the ERC were systematic and ordered at the highest levels of the state, and offer official statements of regret to the victims and their families.
"Truth commissions are about learning the lessons of the past to apply them to the future," said Whitson. "Nothing will do more to ennoble the legacy of the Equity and Reconciliation Commission than if the Moroccan state acts now to curb the impunity, past and present."
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/HRW/984f176fed9e0937c154ebc753ac73fe.htm 
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2M produces documentary on caves in Morocco.

The second Moroccan national channel 2M has produced 'one thousand and one cave' documentary serial, to inform viewers about caves in Morocco, said a release of the channel. The documentary aims at highlighting Morocco's richness in terms of nature and geography, answering the demands of the channel's viewers, who are keen on discovering the thousands facets of the country.

The Moroccan extraordinary landscapes attracted the attention of journalists to shoot and broadcast a scientific documentary serial, bringing the viewers closer to the secrets of Cavernology. The documentary also tends to inform viewers about the causes and circumstances of the formation of caves in many areas in Morocco.
http://www.moroccotimes.com/news/article.asp?id=11290 
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7 years in Morocco: Author tells stories.
Tuesday, November 29, 2005 BY COTTON DELOJOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Pamela Windo moved to Morocco without any plans in place, but ended up staying for seven years. Now in Jersey City, the English-born author comes to Hoboken to share her stories. She arrived in Marrakesh, Morocco in 1989 and quickly began to engage in the rhythm of Moroccan life. She did everything from cooking traditional dishes to frequenting the "hammams" (bathhouses).
Windo, who has lived in Jersey City since 1997, has written a guidebook called "Escape to Morocco" for Fodor's Travel Guide. Her most recent book, "Zorah's Ladder and Other Moroccan Tales," is a collection of reflections about the author's everyday life in Marrakesh, which was released in June by a British publisher.

Windo will give a public reading on Thursday at the Hoboken Public Library.

Unlike most guidebooks, which focus on places, Windo's newest book pays homage to the people of Morocco. "I really wanted to give credit to the people, who were extraordinarily hospitable," she said. "With the current political climate, anything that helps to bridge the (cultural) gap is a good idea."

Windo laments the effect of globalization on the Moroccan landscape. The main square in Marrakesh has been tarred and paved over in recent years in an effort by local people to modernize. Many of the "riads," or mansions in the old part of the city, are foreign-owned and have been converted into boutiques and bed-and-breakfasts that cater to tourists. "In most of the high-end ones, you could be anywhere in the world," she said.

During her years in Morocco, Windo waitressed and taught English. She also worked as a location assistant for director Martin Scorsese, who chose to film "Kundun" (1997) in Southern Morocco because of its resemblance to Tibet, where the movie takes place.
Windo ultimately wanted to be closer to her sons and grandchildren and decided to leave. "As much as I got into Moroccan life, you can't be Moroccan," she said.
http://www.nj.com/living/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/living-0/1133259149121240.xml&coll=3 
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