Morocco clarifies
On Monday, Feb. 15, 1999, your daily published an article on the Kingdom of Morocco and its Sovereign, written by a certain Nikolaus Nowak from Madrid. The author indulges in hostile and erroneous statements and historic contortions, with the sole aim of tarnishing the image of Morocco.
It is greatly regretted that your respected daily allowed the publication of this article without being assured of its objectivity, nor probing the veracity of its contents. Far from informing your readers about Morocco, this fallacious article misled them.
Therefore, though the article is completely malicious, I confine myself to correcting some of the fallacious allegations:
* The recovery of West Sahara by Morocco was founded in history. This territory was indeed part of Morocco many centuries ago, before its occupation by Spain in 1882. Its return to Morocco was also done in full conformity with international laws based on the verdict of the International Court of Justice, which recognized the existence of historical ties of allegiance between the Saharan tribes and the Moroccan monarch before the arrival of colonial powers in Morocco. Finally, the reintegration with Morocco was the result of an agreement between Morocco and Spain. The validity of this agreement was recognized by United Nations Resolution 3458B.
* It is Morocco which proposed in 1981 the organization of a referendum in the Saharan provinces. The referendum has not yet taken place because of obstacles periodically raised by the "Polisario", who fear the results of the referendum. Its latest dilatory maneuver was its opposition to three Saharan tribes, which it refused to recognize. Happily, last December, the UN Secretary-General settled the dispute by identifying all Saharan tribes in conformity with the United Nation's Settlement Plan.
* The first legislative elections took place in Morocco in 1963 and not in 1977. These elections never aimed to give legitimacy to the sovereign power, but to translate the expression of the people's sovereignty. As to the legitimacy of His Majesty the King, it derives its source from five centuries of rule in Morocco by the Alaouite Dynasty, and the symbiosis between the people and the Monarchy. The present prime minister, M. Abderrahman Youssefi, is a socialist leader and not a social democrat. His accession to this post is an achievement of political reforms initiated several years ago by His Majesty the King. Last year, the shift of power in Morocco was internationally praised. The Washington Post in November 1997 qualified it as a historic event in the Arab World.
* Morocco does not have a tribe called Kabyles. As to Berbers, they are not a minority, but the indigenous population of Morocco before the arrival of Islam. As to victims of the 1981 price increase riots in the city of Casablanca, the number of victims as stated by the erroneous article is highly exaggerated. Officially four looters died.
* Morocco was the first country to send a detachment of its army to Saudi Arabia on Aug. 3, 1990, only 48 hours after the invasion of Kuwait, and before the official arrival of allied forces to the region. Morocco was among the 26 allied countries which participated in the Gulf War.
Former prime minister Mr. Abdellatif Filali, the present Minister of Foreign Affairs, is a career diplomat and has never belonged to a political party. As such, he could not have lost the elections in 1997 as erroneously stated because he was not a candidate.
Morocco has become a model of democracy in the region. It is among the few countries which has a Ministry of Human Rights. Amnesty International, which has a branch in Rabat, organized its regional congress in Morocco last year. Our country will host a regional conference on the teaching of human rights in Arab countries this week. These are some of the examples which confirm Morocco's commitment, both internally and internationally, to the respect and promotion of human rights.
OMAR HILALE
Ambassador of Morocco
Jakarta