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Democracy News
Protestors in Morocco Demand Political Change
May 3, 2011
By: Carlos Aramayo | Printer Friendly
On April 24, thousands of Moroccans held peaceful demonstrations nationwide to call for a radical overhaul of the country's governance before King Mohammed unveils a new constitution in June 2011. AFP reported that the protests took place despite earlier promises from the King that he would create a committee for constitutional reform. During his earlier announcement on March 9, the King also promised that in the future, the Parliament – not the King – would choose the prime minister. The King declared a constitutional referendum and that a month of national debate would take place in September 2011.
Nearly one month prior to the April 24 demonstrations, thousands of Moroccans gathered in response to an appeal by a group known as the ‘February 20 movement,’ an organization inspired by the Arab Spring that has been regularly organizing protests. Voice of America reported that the February 20 movement – composed of human rights activists, civil groups and independent journalists – is calling for political reforms, improved civil rights and an end to corruption.
According to CNN, protesters say that the ruling monarchy must make serious changes to the way it is running the country. “This manifestation of Moroccans is a real message to the king that people really need real change in this country,” one protestor said. Demonstrations mostly took large towns, with the city of Casablanca holding the biggest rally with approximately 10,000 protestors. The protestor groups were made up of a diverse population that included unions, women, the unemployed, students, victims of human rights violations and Islamists.
On May 1, the New York Times reported that thousands of protestors – who are not part of the February 20 movement – also demanded political reforms and decried terrorism during an anti-violence march in the city of Marrakech; the city was the target of a terrorist attack on April 28, where 17 people died in café after a bomb exploded. The bomb appeared to have all the hallmarks of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.
Sources:
AFP – Moroccans stage peaceful pro-democracy protests
New York Times – Protesters in Morocco Seek Quicker Shift to Democracy and Denounce Terror
CNN – Moroccan protesters reject king's draft constitution
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