RIGHTS-MOROCCO: Abolition Activists Failing to Stir Campuses

• by Abderrahim El Ouali (casablanca)
• Saturday, December 13, 2008
• Inter Press Service

In June, Abdelilah Benebdesslam, coordinator of the Moroccan Coalition against the Death Penalty, said the organisation would increase its campaigning activities in schools and universities.

The students were 'the representatives of the future and are concerned with all reforms in society', he told IPS.

But six months later, religious students in the universities continue to play an important role in deciding which organisations should be allowed to hold activities.

'If the National Union of Students (L'Union Nationale des Etudiants du Maroc - UNEM) was still under control of the left-leaning parties it would be easier to campaign for abolition on the campuses,' Yassine Lamnawer, a student at the Hassan II University in Casablanca, told IPS.

The leftwing parties -- the main champions of human rights in Morocco since the country's independence from France in 1956 -- once had strong support in the universities.

But since the beginning of the 1990s, Islamists have become more assertive and now control the national student body.

The Islamists, both radical and moderate, strongly oppose human rights, saying these belong to western culture and are incompatible with Islam.

'The Islamist presence in the universities is getting stronger all the time,' Hamza Mahfoud, a university student, told IPS.

'I have never heard of any abolitionist activity held within our university,' Kamal Sehlawi, a student at Hassan II University, confirmed to IPS.

But Islamist hostility to abolitionists was 'not the sole reasons for this absence of their activities' in the universities, he said.

There was general student apathy about civic matters.

This lack of engagement was due to a loss of trust in 'almost all political parties'.

This was reflected in the last elections in Morocco held in September last year. Only 37 percent of the electorate voted, the lowest turnout in the country's history.

Lamnawer, in his early 20s, agreed: 'Our generation has grown up with a general lack of political engagement. Lack of interest in abolition is just an aspect of this.'

But some university students believe that this could change if the Moroccan Coalition against the Death Penalty, a grouping of seven NGOs, could hold more meetings with university students.

A dialogue could emerge between supporters and opponents of the death penalty leading to a 'change of mind' by supporters of capital punishment.

Anti-death penalty activists are hoping for more tolerance for their activities after the main Islamist party, the Justice and Development Party (PJD), recently decided that it would stop taking part in any debates on abolition.

The new public stand could be especially influential because it was set out by Abdelkarim Al Khatib, the party leader and national figure, before his death last September.

'This was a very good sign,' said Mahfoud. 'It means this party will no longer be pressing for the death penalty to be retained on our statute books.'

The expansion in the use of the Internet would also make any continued resistance from student bodies to the holding of abolitionist activities less important, he said.

'Communication is actually easier through the web. An abolitionist web forum is more likely to attract the interest of students than brief meetings.'

On Oct 22, the Moroccan Coalition against the Death Penalty addressed a letter to Prime Minister Abbass El Fassi urging him to back the U.N. General Assembly resolution calling for a global ban on executions. This will be voted on for the second consecutive time by the world body later this month.

Last year, Algeria was the only Arab country to support the resolution when it was passed by 104 votes to 54. There were 29 abstentions.

© Inter Press Service (2008) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service

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