Showing posts with label Morocco. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morocco. Show all posts

Sunday, 18 March 2012

ARAB MONARCHS IN BIG TROUBLE?

Morocco

The feudal rulers of the UAE and Morocco have been staunch 'mafia-fascist' allies of the USA, NATO and Israel.

But the USA, NATO and Israel often dump their staunchest allies.

Tangier

On 17 March 2012, The Economist reports on Whispers of dissent in the UAE and Power in Morocco e

The rulers of the UAE are worried about the growing power of the CIA's Muslim Brotherhood and the CIA-backed 'liberals'.

Nasser Bin Ghaith, an economist, has been in trouble for criticising the lack of reform in the UAE.

Bin Ghaith "is particularly scathing about the economic model that Dubai and Abu Dhabi have followed, which he says is based on property speculation and corruption."

Morocco

Meanwhile in Morocco, the King is in trouble.

A new book, Le Roi Prédateur -The Predator King, published in France, describes how the King of Morocco, Mohammad VI, has quintupled his wealth in his 11 years on the throne.

The king and his cronies own a very large part of the economy.

The king's forces continue to knock down the hovels of the poor.

The security forces have begun demolishing some of an estimated 44,000 shanty town homes built illegally over the past year by poor Moroccans. (Power in Morocco) e

Welcome to Morocco

In the rural areas, deep poverty and deep discontent have led to clashes with the government forces. (Power in Morocco) e

"Curfews, water-cannon and arrests have failed to prevent clashes from engulfing two northern towns.

"Protests over utility prices are acquiring a secessionist edge."

The King of Morocco and Clinton

"A looming drought will only make matters worse."

The economy is deteriorating.

The return of thousands of jobless workers from Europe and Libya has made things worse.

Crime is rising. (Power in Morocco e)

Moroccan

Morocco's new Islamist prime minister, Abdelilah Benkirane, was recently stopped by a mob of angry graduates demanding jobs.

“We voted for you, and you send the police to beat and arrest us,” they shouted.

“The switch in power is of people not policies,” complains a trade unionist. “Nothing will change.”

Benkirane’s coalition is full of ministers from the previous government he has previously criticised for nepotism and waste. (Power in Morocco )e

~~

Sunday, 23 October 2011

MOROCCO IS NEXT?

Morocco is very tense.

Time for the King of Morocco to pack his bags?

Is the CIA planning a coup in Morocco along with its friends in the Moroccan military?

"The militaries of Morocco and the United States have been conducting joint training in the desert of the North African kingdom."

US trains with Moroccan Army in Sahara Desert

Morocco

On 12 October 2011, a Moroccan protester died after being pushed by the police.

On 23 October 2011, Reuters reported that "Thousands of Moroccans demonstrated in cities across the country Sunday...

"In the capital Rabat, a Reuters reporter saw dozens of riot police with truncheons beating and kicking protesters who had gathered in front of the parliament building at the end of a march by around 3,000 people.

"A local elected official in the country's biggest city, Casablanca, said about 8,000 people took part in a similar protest there.

"Several thousand took part in protests in other cities including Fes and Tangier."

Protesters in Rabat chanted 'The elections are a charade, you will not fool us this time.'

"Many brandished pictures of the body of Muammar Gaddafi, the slain deposed leader of Libya, with the caption: 'This is what happens to despots.'"

Moroccans protest polls, violence in the capital

However, there is a view that the USA and Israel want to protect the King of Morocco.

The man who runs Morocco, Andrey Azoulay, the King's adviser, is Jewish. (André Azoulay, le véritable régent au Maroc - Translate this page )

Morocco has greater poverty than Egypt.

Why is NATO not bombing Morocco?

Morocco has "widespread corruption, an appallingly low level of literacy, high rates of unemployment among university graduates, a judiciary that is subservient to the king and a police force that engages in beatings and torture." (The Moroccan 'Exception')

Morocco's 'brutal dictatorship' is praised by Joe Lieberman and Hilary Clinton. (The Moroccan 'Exception')

Whereas Gaddafi made sure that his people had free schooling, free health care and free housing, the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, has made sure that the rich elite hold on to their wealth while the poor live in miserable slums.

King Mohammed VI

Mohammed VI is the seventh richest monarch in the world.

In 2010, it was reported that 5 million people in Morocco live on less than one euro per day.

Mohammed VI’s wealth includes twenty palaces, several thousand hectares of farmland, companies involved in mining, the agricultural industry, communications, insurance, distribution, packaging and bottling company, furniture and textiles and agricultural, and real estate and properties in France and the United States.

Morocco is ranked 108th in terms of income per head. (Morocco King among the richest royals in the world ...)

King Hassan II, friend of MOSSAD and the CIA

When King Hassan II of Morocco died in 1999, world leaders mourned the ruthless despot

Attending Hassan II's funeral were Bill and Hillary Clinton, former president George Bush and two former US Secretaries of State James Baker and Warren Christopher.

According to Bill Clinton, "King Hassan worked tirelessly for the welfare of his people.

"He had taken important steps to deepen freedom in his country."

King Hassan II maintained friendly relations with Israel, represented at the funeral by Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Secretary David Levy.

Shimon Peres said, "With his passing we lose one of the most experienced and wisest leaders that this region has enjoyed in the last half century".

Hassan had been "a playboy frequenting Europe's casinos and sporting the typical accoutrements of royals, with or without their crowns: racehorses, sports cars, aircraft, and film star girlfriends."

Malnutrition is a problem in Morocco.

In 1999, it was reported that "at least 55 percent of Moroccans are illiterate and 40 percent of children have never attended school.

"Infant mortality is the highest in North Africa and more than double that of Algeria.

"Only half the rural population has access to proper healthcare and less than one fifth have access to sanitation and clean water." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)

Hassan owned many palaces and 20 percent of Morocco's agricultural land.

Mehdi Ben Barka, opposition leader of the Union des Forces Populaires, was kidnapped in Paris and assassinated. Israeli intelligence experts have said that Mossad helped with the assassination.

The real Morocco.

The CIA "had Hassan on their payroll for years." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)

Opponents disappeared in their hundreds.

"Golda Meir, Moshe Dayan, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres were among the Israeli leaders who, in elaborate disguises, flew in Hassan's private planes at crucial moments.

"Israeli newspapers said that Hassan allowed Mossad to set up a station in Morocco and develop close ties with Moroccan security forces." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)

~~

aangirfan: THE PUZZLING CASE OF MOROCCO
aangirfan: MOROCCO BOMB

Thursday, 25 August 2011

MOROCCO VERSUS LIBYA

Morocco has greater poverty than Egypt.



Why is NATO not bombing Morocco?



Morocco has "widespread corruption, an appallingly low level of literacy, high rates of unemployment among university graduates, a judiciary that is subservient to the king and a police force that engages in beatings and torture." (The Moroccan 'Exception')



Morocco's 'brutal dictatorship' is praised by Joe Lieberman and Hilary Clinton. (The Moroccan 'Exception')



Whereas Gaddafi made sure that his people had free schooling, free health care and free housing, the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, has made sure that the rich elite hold on to their wealth while the poor live in miserable slums.



King Mohammed VI



Mohammed VI is the seventh richest monarch in the world.



In 2010, it was reported that 5 million people in Morocco live on less than one euro per day.



Mohammed VI’s wealth includes twenty palaces, several thousand hectares of farmland, companies involved in mining, the agricultural industry, communications, insurance, distribution, packaging and bottling company, furniture and textiles and agricultural, and real estate and properties in France and the United States.



Morocco is ranked 108th in terms of income per head. (Morocco King among the richest royals in the world ...)



King Hassan II, friend of MOSSAD and the CIA



When King Hassan II of Morocco died in 1999, world leaders mourned the ruthless despot



Attending Hassan II's funeral were Bill and Hillary Clinton, former president George Bush and two former US Secretaries of State James Baker and Warren Christopher.



According to Bill Clinton, "King Hassan worked tirelessly for the welfare of his people.



"He had taken important steps to deepen freedom in his country."



King Hassan II maintained friendly relations with Israel, represented at the funeral by Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Secretary David Levy.



Shimon Peres said, "With his passing we lose one of the most experienced and wisest leaders that this region has enjoyed in the last half century".



Hassan had been "a playboy frequenting Europe's casinos and sporting the typical accoutrements of royals, with or without their crowns: racehorses, sports cars, aircraft, and film star girlfriends."



Malnutrition is a problem in Morocco.



In 1999, it was reported that "at least 55 percent of Moroccans are illiterate and 40 percent of children have never attended school.



"Infant mortality is the highest in North Africa and more than double that of Algeria.



"Only half the rural population has access to proper healthcare and less than one fifth have access to sanitation and clean water." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)



Hassan owned many palaces and 20 percent of Morocco's agricultural land.



Mehdi Ben Barka, opposition leader of the Union des Forces Populaires, was kidnapped in Paris and assassinated. Israeli intelligence experts have said that Mossad helped with the assassination.



The real Morocco.



The CIA "had Hassan on their payroll for years." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)



Opponents disappeared in their hundreds.



"Golda Meir, Moshe Dayan, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres were among the Israeli leaders who, in elaborate disguises, flew in Hassan's private planes at crucial moments.



"Israeli newspapers said that Hassan allowed Mossad to set up a station in Morocco and develop close ties with Moroccan security forces." (world leaders mourned the ruthless despot)



~~



The man who runs Morocco, Andrey Azoulay, the King's adviser, is Jewish. (André Azoulay, le véritable régent au Maroc - Translate this page )



~~



aangirfan: THE PUZZLING CASE OF MOROCCO

aangirfan: MOROCCO BOMB



Thursday, 2 June 2011

ORGY WITH LITTLE BOYS

Lang

Jack Lang, former French culture and education minister, is an ally of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

On 2 June 2011, we read that Jack Lang is being accused of involvement in an 'orgy with little boys' in Marrakech in Morocco.

Strauss-Kahn ally is accused of 'orgy with little boys' in Morocco

Luc Ferry, another French ex-minister, referred to the alleged crime on TV, but did not name the ex-minister involved.

Reportedly, the 'crime' was uncovered by police after raiding a 'palm grove'.

L'Express, the political weekly, reported on its website that Ferry was referring to an old rumour involving Jack Lang.

Strauss-Kahn owns a holiday home in Marrakech.

He has had Lang as a guest at his Marrakech home.

Frederic Mitterand is France's culture minister.

In 2005 he wrote about his holidays in Thailand.

He wrote: 'I got into the habit of paying for boys ... The profusion of young, very attractive and immediately available boys put me in a state of desire I no longer needed to restrain or hide.'

Douste-Blazy

gallier2 comments as follows:

"Hi, in fact, it's not Jack Lang that Ferry is talking of, it's Douste-Blazy who was a cabinet minister some time ago.

"Douste-Blazy is a good buddy of Dominique Baudis who was at the heart of a big affair several years ago, which involved prostitutes, parties, sacrifices and what not.

"Obviously, he was innocented (yeah), but several strange things happened in the wake of the process (a cop commiting suicide by shooting 2 bullets in his head and so on).

"This Luc Ferry affair is bigger than it looks like and a whole side of the pedophocracy risks to be exposed."

Baudis

In 2003, certain former prostitutes told French TV that, in the early 1990s, sado-masochist parties took place near Toulouse in France.

They said the parties were organised by Patrice Alegre.

In 2002, Alegre was jailed for life for six rapes and five murders.

Alegre accused a number of officials, including Dominique Baudis, of ordering some of his killings to protect themselves from blackmail.

Baudis is an anti-pornography campaigner.

He has said that that he is the victim of a conspiracy by the porn industry.

(BBC NEWS - French sex scandal collapses)

~~

CHRISTINE LAGARDE WORKS FOR US CORPORATIONS?

~~

Saturday, 30 April 2011

MARRAKECH BOMB - INSIDE JOB?

People of Marrrakech

A website has accused friends of Morroco's King Mohammed VI of being behind the bombing in Marrakech.

The website Hibapress accuses Mounir Majidi, the king's secretary, and WFP (Authenticity and Modernity Party) boss Fouad Ali El Himma of being behind the attack in Marrakesh.

And, according to political exile Abdelillah Issou, the Moroccan regime wants to create 'a state of siege.'

The bomb gives the rich elite an excuse to clamp down on opponents of the regime?

(Marrakech : Les théories de la conspiration commencent Demain - [ Translate this page ])

There are conflicting reports about what happened in the bombing in Morocco.

The bomb in Marrakesh that killed 16 people "was set off by a remote-control device", according to Morrocan Interior minister Taeb Cherkaoui.

"The explosion was set off from a distance," Mr Cherkaoui told parliament in Rabat. (Al Qaeda suspected in Marrakesh bombing )

Marrakech

The news portal Lakome.com had said that the bomb was a suicide attack.

They also said that the bomber had been freed from prison two months ago after having been sentenced to eight years in jail for rape.

(Marrakesh bomb blast: Briton among 16 killed in terrorist attack ...‎)

Two of the dead are "Michal Zekry, 29, an Israeli-Canadian who was pregnant, and her husband, Messod Wizman, 30, a Moroccan-Canadian." (Fatal Bomb in Morocco Shows Signs of Al Qaeda )

A third Jewish victim was "British travel writer Peter Moss" who used to work for the Jewish Chronicle.

(Briton named as victim of Morocco bombing)

The bombers had to get through police controls to attack the square, which is well protected.

"They were surely well organized and significantly trained, " said Jean-Yves Moisseron, editor of Maghreb-Machrek. (Fatal Bomb in Morocco Shows Signs of Al Qaeda)

~

MOROCCO BOMB

Welcome to Morocco.



On 28 April 2011, the Morocco-U.S. Defense Consultative Committee was meeting in Rabat in Morocco. (Morocco-US Defense Consultative Committee meets in Rabat)



On 28 April 2011, Le Figaro reported the deaths of a British national and two French nationals in a bomb attack in Morocco.



The bomb hit the Argana cafe in Jamaa el-Fna square in Marrakesh.



The total number of people killed is reported to be 14.







In 2003, bombers attacked five targets in Casablanca, killing 45 people.



In 2011, "Morocco has seen two months of protests against King Mohammed VI amid a tide of uprisings across the region." (Marrakesh bomb strikes Djemaa el-Fna square)



Morocco is much, much poorer than Egypt.



According to economist Najib Akesbi, "entire sectors" of the economy serve as sources of income for the rich elite.



According to Akesby, King Mohammed VI and his family control most farmland and the main companies in the industrial, services, commercial, distribution and export sectors. (Poverty time bomb ticks in Morocco - Africa - Mail & Guardian Online)

~~

MOROCCO TURNS VIOLENT?

THE PUZZLING CASE OF MOROCCO

ISRAEL'S FRIEND MOROCCO

Morocco and tourism

Morocco - the CIA's dustbin and the CIA's recruiting ...

~~

Thursday, 24 March 2011

GADDAFI'S OPPONENTS ARE DRUGS DEALERS?

With CIA control of North Africa, cocaine can more easily reach Europe?

Gaddafi's opponents are drugs dealers.

They are involved in the trade in cocaine.

(Coalition of Crusaders join with al Qaeda to oust Qaddafi and roll back Libyan Revolution - thanks to Brian for the link)

Their partners may be the CIA?

In 2007, al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri announced a merger between the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) and al Qaeda in the Islamic Mahgreb (AQIM)

(LIBYA: 2009 COUNTRY REPORTS ON TERRORISM - Telegraph)

In November 2010, Moroccan police detained 34 people with ties to al Qaeda in the Islamic Mahgreb (AQIM), attempting to move 1,300 pounds of cocaine through Morocco.

(Coalition of Crusaders join with al Qaeda to oust Qaddafi and roll back Libyan Revolution /
Morocco Al Qaeda Islamic Maghreb)

The Moroccan Interior Minister said "We are dealing with an apparent coordination and collaboration between drug traffickers and terrorists linked to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb."

He said that the leader of AQIM's drug ring was detained in Mali.

He said that the international drug ring involved Moroccan drug traffickers, who were collaborating with al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, as well as cartels in Latin America.

"According to UN reports, nearly 60 percent of the cocaine sold in Europe transits through weak West African states such as Mali, Niger, Mauritania, and Guinea Bissau...

"As many of these same countries are now becoming a haven for a shadowy group calling itself Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), there are growing concerns that Islamist radicals and Latin American drug cartels may be working together, both to enrich themselves and to weaken the law enforcement capability of those West African states." (Latin America's drug cartels giving Al Qaeda a lift?.)


AQIM=CIA, it's totally obvious.

~~

Tuesday, 1 March 2011

ISRAEL'S FRIEND MOROCCO

Morocco. Website for this image

Why is Morocco not the same as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya?

A. Morocco is friends with Israel.

"Mossad and the Moroccans began cooperating just a few years after Morocco gained independence...

"Both countries exchanged intelligence information about their mutual enemies: Algeria and Egypt." (The Moroccan Connection: The Secret Relationship Between Israel ...)

Morocco has often served as an intermediary between Israel and the other Arab states. (Cached)

The man who runs Morocco, Andrey Azoulay, the King's adviser, is Jewish. (André Azoulay, le véritable régent au Maroc - Translate this page )

Morocco is said to be the CIA's dustbin and the CIA's recruiting ground.

enfants_berberes_du_dadess_atlas_maroc
Moroccans by zadig1

B. Morocco is much poorer than Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco.

In Morocco, female literacy is only 39.6%. (Morocco)

Morocco: Gross National Income per person: $2,790

Libya: GNI per person: US $12,020



On 1 March 2011, the Washington Post asks Why the Morocco protests have failed to take hold

From this we learn:

1. "The gatherings organized in recent weeks by Moroccan youths through Facebook and Twitter have been episodic and small..."

2. The demonstrations in Morocco "have been largely peaceful."

However, more than 50 people were reportedly injured in clashes with police in Agadir on 27 February 2011, rioting in Hoceima left five dead when a bank was burned by protesters, and an unwed mother of two died after setting herself on fire to protest being refused public housing.

3. Morocco has an inadequate health-care system.

Patients must often pay bribes before receiving treatment.

Schools are poor.

4. According to Abdeslam Maghraoui, a North Africa and Middle East expert at Duke University:

"People can go to jail if they say something bad about the king.

"When I hear people speak about the exception of Morocco, I find it mind-boggling."

"The level of the challenge has not intensified yet, but I think it will."

5. "The king has long been a reforming figure in Morocco," according to US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley.

Sunday, 20 February 2011

MOROCCO TURNS VIOLENT?

According to the Dutch newspaper De Gay Krant, the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, is gay. Mohammed went to college in Brussels and regularly hung out in gay bars there, De Gay Krant said. Mohammed VI is said to have helped the poor. It would be unfortunate if he was toppled. Violent riots would make the poor poorer.



The CIA-Mossad people may be in two minds about Morocco.



On the one hand, they may want to protect "the Zionist André Azoulay and his team" who run Morocco. (MOROCCO)



On the other hand, they want to destroy Moroccan culture and make Morocco part of the New World Order.



Recent Facebook and YouTube material suggests that the CIA-Mossad-Nato people have decided to do to Morocco what they have done to Egypt.



"We’ve seen the hard power of shock and awe in Iraq.



"Are we witnessing across the Middle East right now a form of soft power?



"A shock and awe 2.0 where American social networks drive the change rather than laser guided missiles?"



http://hotterthanapileofcurry.wordpress.com/2011/02/21/the-middle-east-revolutions-all-part-of-american-public-diplomacy-2-0-initiative-the-new-shock-awe/



Aangirfan would like Morocco to keep its culture, redistribute wealth and kick out the CIA.

Andrey Azoulay, the King's Jewish adviser.



Former BBC Morocco correspondent Richard Hamilton says Morocco has "a gap between rich and poor described by one commentator as 'obscene'; and parliamentary elections said by critics to be a fig leaf for an undemocratic system." (Morocco protesters demand change)



"Morocco scores among the lowest on economic indicators, ranking 114th in the 2010 United Nations Human Development Report ... compared with Bahrain at 39th.



"Morocco's gross national income per capita of $2,770 and literacy rate 56%, according to World Bank data, are particularly low.



"Libya, Iran, Jordan and Bahrain have GNI per capita ranging from $4,000 to $25,000, and all have literacy rates above 80%." (Region's Protests Spread to Morocco)



On 20 February 2011 there were reports of peaceful protests.

The story changed on 21 February.





Millions protest in Morocco Casablanca 28 10 2010

On 20 February 2011, it was reported that "In Rabat, the capital, and in Casablanca, the largest city, there were between 3,000 and 5,000 protesters, and there were smaller demonstrations in Marrakesh, Tangier and other cities.



"All were peaceful." (Fears of Chaos Temper Calls for Change in Morocco)



"As protests began Sunday (20 Feb), there was virtually no visible uniformed police presence in Rabat.



"By 4 p.m., there was no sign of the state violence witnessed in Egypt, Libya, Bahrain or Iran, and the crowd had dwindled to around 1,000.



"Stores were largely unshuttered and cafes open along the protesters' route toward the parliament, as patrons watched from their sidewalk tables sipping cafe au lait in the partly Francophone capital." (Region's Protests Spread to Morocco)



"There were reports of scattered violence on Sunday evening in Marrakesh, where protesters, some of them throwing stones, clashed with the police and attacked a McDonald’s" (Fears of Chaos Temper Calls for Change in Morocco )



On 21 February 2011, we read that Morocco Joins in, Defying Predictions :

"Video clips uploaded to Youtube overnight showed what purported to be groups of protesters in Tangier, Fes, Marrakesh and other cities Sunday, including several clashes with police and apparent vandalism.

"A clip from Al Hoceima, a port in northern Morocco, showed a hotel gutted by fire and young men milling around among broken glass from the blown-out windows.

"Clips purporting to be from Tangier and Sefrou, a town near Fes, showed skirmishes with police. In the clip from Sefrou, a group of police severely beat one protester with clubs."

The King and his Jewish friends may be unable to prevent violence. In 1955, Berber tribesmen descended on the village of Oed Zen and killed every Frenchman they found. On 20 June 1981, up to 600 people were killed in rioting in Casablanca (Le Figaro 1 July 1981, page 2). In 1984, up to 200 people were killed in rioting in cities such as Tetouan (Le monde 26 Jan 1984, page 4).

We assume that the CIA-Mossad-NATO want to "strip influence from what a U.S. diplomat described as Morocco's 'monarchical autocracy' in a 2008 U.S. State Department cable published by WikiLeaks." (Region's Protests Spread to Morocco)



Like Mubarak and Ben Ali, the King of Morocco has his fans.



"This king works for the people. He has done a lot for the poor," said a 67-year-old who said he was a landscape artist and gave his name only as Mohammed. "I don't know what these young people want, we who are older have seen a lot." (Region's Protests Spread to Morocco)



The CIA-Mossad-NATO people seem to want peaceful change?



According to Robert M. Holley, a retired U.S. diplomat and executive director of the American Moroccan Center for Policy, a lobby in Washington, D.C. "The point is that if people want to change the government in Morocco, they just have to wait a couple of years until elections and do it." (Region's Protests Spread to Morocco)



Andre Azoulay, who advises the King of Morocco.



The Moroccan people are reportedly governed by "the Zionist André Azoulay and his team."



(André Azoulay, le véritable régent au Maroc - [ Translate this page ])



Why is Morocco not like Tunisia?



1. According to Judith Miller at Newsmax.com:



"Morocco... unlike most of North Africa has remained calm."



(Tunisia's 'Jasmine Revolution' Could Quickly Wither)



Morocco is much poorer than Tunisia.



Morocco: Gross National Income per person: $2,790

Tunisia: GNI per person $7,810



In Morocco, much of the wealth is in the hands of the King, his generals and a few businessmen.



Illiteracy and poverty are widespread in Morocco.



"Tunisia's 10 million people enjoy high rates of literacy and a good educational system, relative equality for women, a strong middle class and impressive economic growth and development." Tunisia's 'Jasmine Revolution' Could Quickly Wither

The King of Morocco, whose father was said to be worth $40 billion



2. Ratings agency Fitch has said that:

"it does not expect a Tunisia-style uprising in Morocco, because the country has invested in social housing and made progress in alleviating poverty." (uprising unlikely in Morocco -Fitch Reuters / Protests as Tunisia readies cabinet reshuffle )



In Tunisia we saw a lot of social housing.



When we were in Morocco, fairly recently, we saw a very strong military presence, and a lot of slums and poor kids.

Moroccans



In January 2011, at UN Post, Gabrielle Pickard wrote (Poverty in Morocco UN Post):



"Poverty is particularly rife in rural areas of Morocco, where as many as one in four people living in rural regions are poor...



"Uneven development ... has led to many people moving to the bigger cities such as Marrakesh looking for employment and a better standard of living.



"But do they find it?



"Judging by the sheer scale of beggars on the streets in Marrakesh and destitute children, many as young as three ... life in the city is just as hard..."



Larache by Chach Coati - http://www.flickr.com/photos/86778817@N00/77755746/ Chach Coati's photostream

3. Some people see Andre Azoulay, counselor to King Mohammed VI of Morocco, as the most important person in Morocco.



Andre Azoulay is Jewish.



Morocco is one of those Moslem countries that appears to be run by the military and the secret police.



Morocco is one of those Moslem countries that appears to be friends with Israel and the Pentagon.



The King of Morocco and his generals are very, very rich.



The bulk of the population is very poor.



There are huge slums on the outskirts of cities such as Marrakech which the tourists never see.



In 2003, when a Moslem party began to win support among the poor, bombs went off.

No Jews or Israelis were among the casualties.

The bombs were blamed on the Islamists. There was a crackdown on opponents of the military. More than 3,000 people were arrested.



Morocco occupies a strategically important position and is useful to the Pentagon.



Some people suspect that the CIA recruits Moroccans for some of its work.

Welcome to Morocco!

4. The Sunday Times reported, 12 February 2006, that, according to intelligence sources, the USA is involved with the building of a new interrogation and detention facility at Ain Aouda, near Rabat.

(http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2089-2036185_2,00.html)



Locals said they had often seen American vehicles with diplomatic plates in the area.



According to The Sunday Times:



The construction of the new compound, run by the... the Moroccan secret police, adds to a substantial body of evidence that Morocco is one of America’s principal partners in the secret “rendition” programme...



A recent inquiry into rendition by the Council of Europe ... highlighted a pattern of flights between Washington, Guantanamo Bay and Rabat’s military airport at Sale...



The secret police HQ at Temara has a fearsome reputation among former inmates. Binyam Mohammed, a Briton later sent to Guantanamo Bay, told Amnesty International that interrogators there cut his chest and penis when he refused to answer questions.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Mhamid_Street.JPG



5. I got the impression that something was seriously wrong with Morocco.

I came across a small malnourished, ragged child staring at some postcards outside a shop.

I gave the boy a few coins. He kissed my hand gravely and thanked me many times.

Moroccan cities also seem to have more than their fair share of the mentally backward (caused by inbreeding?) and the mentally ill (caused by poverty and powerlessness?)



I was in the main square in the Moroccan city of xxxxxxxxxx one sunny morning (2002).

There were riot police, and ordinary police and soldiers stationed in the square.

There were riot police down the various side streets and sitting in cafes.

There were plain clothes police and uniformed officers on all the major roads.

In the square there were speeches given by the smartly dressed leaders of one of the 'left-wing' parties. These leaders were dressed like the mafia. The crowd which had gathered to listen was small and their applause was less than lukewarm.

Tangier



Riots are common in Morocco.



In 1955, Berber tribesmen descended on the village of Oed Zen and killed every Frenchman they found.



On 20 June 1981, up to 600 people were killed in rioting in Casablanca (Le Figaro 1 July 1981, page 2).



In 1984, up to 200 people were killed in rioting in cities such as Tetouan (Le monde 26 Jan 1984, page 4).






6. HASSAN



So what is happening in Morocco?



Morocco's former king, Hassan, was said to be worth $40 billion.



Out of the 100 richest people in Morocco, 'the top 50 are in the armed forces or police.'

'The fortune amassed by the 20 richest army officers would be enough to pay off Morocco's foreign debt of $17bn.'



I visited a shanty settlement. I am not brave; I simply wandered in by accident.

This was a place of barking dogs, piles of rubbish, home made shacks with no water supply or sewage disposal, and ragged children who looked seriously malnourished.

A high wall hid the shacks of the poor from any tourists on the main streets.



A sizeable chunk of the population lives below the poverty line.



According to ex-army officer Ahmed Rami, who is now in exile, the former King of Morocco, Hassan, was a puppet of the Jews and of the CIA.

To Rami, King Hassan could not take a step without the Jew André Azoulay, a Zionist "adviser".

Azoulay - and people like him - allegedly made the important decisions, such as helping the rich get richer, and being sympathetic to Israel and the USA.

Education, the media and the whole of social life were regulated by these advisers, not by the Moroccans themselves.



In July 2000 (Le Monde diplomatique - English edition) it was reported that:

At least 25% of Morocco's population of 29 million are unemployed.



More than half the population is illiterate (70% of women) and two-thirds of people living in the country do not have access to drinking water, 87% are without electricity and 93% receive no medical care.



Morocco makes its money from the receipts sent home by Moroccans working abroad (most Moroccans want to get out of Morocco because of its corruption), from cannabis (sold in Europe), from smuggling (stolen cars and other goods), from phosphates (used in farming), from fishing (sardines), from farming (most of the best land is owned by a small rich elite, including army officers and politicians), from textiles (most Moroccan industry is still medieval and there is much competition from cheap-labour countries such as Turkey), and from tourism (Morocco gets about 2 million tourists per year while Spain hosts 45 million; Morocco has surprisingly few hotel beds).




The farms of the elite have been given much help and produce lots of oranges and vegetables intended for export to Europe; but Europe would rather buy its fruit and vegetables from the likes of Spain or Portugal. Morocco is no longer self-sufficient in wheat but has more oranges than it knows what to do with.



The farms of the poor suffer from having too many people and not enough water.

The rural poor escape to the cities -Tangiers, Rabat, Casablanca and Marrakesh - where they crowd into shanty towns on the outskirts or even in the centre.



I visited a poor farming area. The children's faces looked pinched.

Few of the girls went to school.

The houses had no water or toilets or electricity.

Transport was by donkey.



The 5 star Gazelle d'Or hotel, near Taroudant, has been visited by the likes of the Duchess of York and Michael Portillo. It refused to let me in. Rooms cost hundreds of dollars. Not far from the Gazelle d'Or I came across villages with falling down houses and ragged children.

Photo by Rosino at http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosino/84968877/



7. Muhammad VI came to the throne in 1999.



In all the main towns and cities there are large posters showing his face. (A bit like Baby Doc's Haiti?)



According to Le monde Diplomatique, in 2000, (Morocco: the point of change - Le Monde diplomatique - English edition)



When he came to power, the new socialist Prime Minister, Youssoufi, undertook to straighten out the economy, decentralise administrative bodies, clean up public life, fight corruption, reform justice, combat poverty, develop low-income housing for the very poor, introduce a national pact for employment and, of course, find a solution to the dispute over the Sahara.



Not much has been achieved....



The figures for illiteracy, poverty and healthcare have scarcely changed. Many reforms are incomplete, though some of them, such as electoral reform, changes to legal procedure, labour law or the law on public freedom, are vital to the continuation of the transition process.



And there is still high unemployment, as well as discrimination against women, corruption, feudal authoritarianism and sporadic human rights violations.



In the poorest neighbourhoods people are turning to the Islamists and not the socialists. The Islamist Justice and Welfare association founded by Sheikh Yassin visits the sick, helps them to buy medicine, contributes to funeral expenses, organises evening classes for the schoolchildren and supports single women, widows and divorcees.



A quote from Le Monde Diplomatique: "Latifa, aged 45, teaches maths in a secondary school in the suburbs of Casablanca.



She says "The middle classes account for barely 5% of the population, compared with more than 35% in Tunisia. Morocco's dominated by a system of networks, nepotism, clans, interconnected families who would rather give a job to an unsuitable, incompetent relation rather than a highly qualified young person from a poor background."



In May 2003, there were bomb attacks in Casablanca. Over 30 people died. Islamic militants were blamed. The government was then able to have a clampdown and 'hundreds' were arrested.



Enough of politics.







8.
Moroccan cities are full of female prostitutes. But they are generally for the Moroccans (soldiers and those not yet married) and not for the tourists.



AIDS is very widespread.



My male guide, Hamid, walked ahead of me with his male friend. Hamid spent most of the time gently rubbing his friends back or holding his friend's hand. According to the experts, Moroccans like spending time with a single friend of the same sex. Same sex friendships are very important for Moroccans all through their lives. There are few limits to intimacy in same sex friendships. Moroccans 'usually marry out of a sense of duty.'



According to 'Culture Shock- Moroc co' by Orin Hargraves (Kuperard), "Homosexual relations among boys and young men are common."

"Pederasty is exceedingly prevalent" wrote Edward Westermack in "Ritual and Belief in Morocco."

In Morocco, homosexual sex by tourists is heavily punished; and sex with minors is very heavily punished with long jail sentences. In any case, tourists are not loved by the average Moroccan who sees the tourist as an alien



The hotel, the Gazelle D'or, at around £600 a night, is rather special. Visitors have allegedly included Michael Portillo, Jacques Chirac, Fergie, Rory Bremner, Mick Jagger, hosts of pop stars, statesmen, politicians, personalities, and 'the world's wealthiest closet Queens.'



According to Scallywag magazine, "As far as Westminster is concerned, the Gazelle D'or was first "discovered" by the notorious gay MP Sir Charles "Charley" Irving who died from aids in 1993. Irving, who chaired the Commons catering Committee, was famous for his private parties in the Pugin room in Westminster where he outrageously flirted with the male members of staff. Many of the 100-plus gay Tory MP's who inhabit "The Palace", often furtively, were fellow guests........


The REAL attraction of the Gazelle D'or is not just the exclusivity, or the fabulous luxury. It is, quite simply, that they boast one of the most superlative men-only Turkish baths, Sauna and Massage Parlour in the world, manned by hand-picked and specially trained swarthy Berbers who are most willing to accommodate every whim of their customers. The whole concept of the place is designed to be a veritable paradise for gays."

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