Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations (BCIJ) has dismantled a cocaine ring operating in different cities.

A communiqué by the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) said on Tuesday that 10 people were arrested over suspicion of international cocaine trafficking.

Police investigations also led to the seizure of a record quantity of cocaine.

The press release indicated that 2,588 kilos of cocaine were seized in different locations: a car registered outside Morocco, a farm located between Temara and Skhirat, another farm in Bouznika, and in Nador in northern Morocco.

In Nador, 105 kilos of cannabis were seized along with large sums of money. The release specified that suspects had EUR 391,520 and MAD 172,620 in cash.

In addition, six cars, suspected of being used in drug transportation and smuggling, were also seized.

The quantity of raw cocaine grows three-fold when processed. This huge amount of drugs, as the communiqué said, would have been sold for millions of dirhams.

The cocaine ring has networks in several Moroccan cities, DGSN noted, adding that investigators are looking into the ring’s potential connection with others operating in the international drug trade.

The arrested individual has been placed under custody. Meanwhile, the public prosecution is continuing its investigations into the case in coordination with other security services.

The BCIJ, while known primarily for its successful operations in countering terrorism, works to fight a variety of crimes, including drug trafficking.

 Chinese eco-friendly electric buses are rolling out in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh in yet another example of growing Chinese footprint in the North African nation. The buses were supposed to roll out in November last year when Marrakesh hosted the 22nd edition of the Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. However, technical issues didn’t allow that to happen. Subsequent months saw trials and driver training that ensured the buses were finally ready to hit the road.

China’s growing investments in Morocco are wide-ranging – from building smart cities to establishing collaborative ventures in automotive manufacturing, aerospace, electronic information, textiles, etc. In contrast, India’s economic engagement with Morocco continues to be dominated by the trade in phosphates. This needs to change if India is to fully realise the potential of its relationship with Morocco. The latter sits on the crossroads of two continents with Europe just 15km away. Plus, Morocco can be India’s gateway to Francophone Africa where New Delhi’s reach has been traditionally weaker. And with Morocco returning to the African Union earlier this year, it can be the perfect partner for India in advancing its African interests.

Yet, India’s engagement with Morocco lags far behind that of China’s. This is explained by the difference in resources and skill sets that New Delhi and Beijing possess. India really isn’t known for building overseas infrastructure. But it can turn this around by teaming up with Japan. In fact, New Delhi and Tokyo are exploring modalities of cooperation for infrastructure and human development projects in Africa as part of a proposed Asia Africa Growth Corridor.

During Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to India last month, the two premiers “welcomed the efforts to explore the development of industrial corridors and industrial network for the growth of Asia and Africa, which will benefit various stakeholders in the Indo-Pacific region including Africa. They shared the desire to further promote cooperation and collaboration in Africa in line with the priority measures identified through the India-Japan dialogue on Africa and the processes of the India Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) and Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD)”.

In other words, India and Japan are ready to team up for African development projects that are collaborative in design, sensitive to local needs, locally owned, responsibly financed and bottom-up in approach. Japan certainly has the technology and the skills to build quality physical infrastructure. While India has a proven track record in fostering soft skills and developing human resource through training and education. Together, India and Japan can be the perfect combination for Africa.

And in this respect, Morocco should become the first port of call for the Asia Africa Growth Corridor. The Kingdom’s stable security environment and sure-footed economy make it ideal to receive joint Indian-Japanese investments. Indian and Japanese joint-ventures can then use Morocco as a launchpad for forays into other African markets and Europe. In conclusion, teaming up with Japan provides India with greater strength to fructify its African interests. And Morocco with its stable economic and security profile can be the keystone of the India-Japan partnership for Africa.

 As tension mounted in Catalonia after a local independence referendum received a crackdown from Madrid, Morocco expressed its official support of Spain’s Unity. Some have connected the kingdom’s stance to the conflict in the Western Sahara, but one political analyst has a different explanation.

For decades, Morocco and Spain have been at odds over the kingdom’s dispute with the separatist Polisario Front. Madrid has long held a position that was regarded by Moroccans as hostile to what they see as the kingdom’s territorial integrity.

For some, the Spanish hostility had roots in the rich history of conflict between the sides, including over Spain’s continuous “occupation” of lands Moroccans believe are theirs, such as the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla and the Chafarinas Islands.

According to this reading, Madrid tried to divert Morocco’s attention from those lands and keep the kingdom focused on Western Sahara by providing support for the separatist Polisario Front.

In the 1970’s Spain also reportedly encouraged Mauritania to claim parts of Western Sahara and supported Algeria to be an active player in the conflict, according to a document released by Wikileaks.

In Spain, Polisario has a sizeable following among Sahrawi students, activists, and politicians. Some Polisario’s leading members hold Spanish nationality, including Khadijetou Ould El Mokhtar Sidhmed, an organization representative recently deported from Peru.

The Iberian kingdom is also home to several local pro-Polisario NGOs.

Things started to change however when the Socialists came to power in Spain in 2004. Economic considerations, especially after the 2008 international crisis, and Spain’s increasing reliance on its partnership with Morocco to fight terrorism and counter unwanted immigration were also key factors behind Spain’s change of position regarding the issue.

In contrast with its standpoints in the past, Madrid declares today that is in favor of a “lasting” and “mutually agreed-upon” solution to the conflict, and that is keen to preserve the strong relations with Morocco.

But was the Western Sahara dispute the reason Mustapha El Khalfi said late September that the kingdom backed Spain in its rejection of the Catalan referendum?

Samir Bennis, Morocco World News’s senior analyst, says that Morocco’s pro-unity stance and its own territorial dispute are unrelated.

“Morocco’s support to Spain is in line with its foreign policy, which rejects secessionist movements and defends the sovereignty of states and their territorial integrity,” says the analyst.

Bennis explains that this position has remained unchanged, giving as an example Morocco’s refusal to recognize Kosovo and its denunciation of the recent independence vote in the Iraqi region of Kurdistan.

On Thursday, El Khalfi said that Morocco stands with the Iraqi government in its rejection of the referendum which he said threatens the “security and territorial integrity” of the country.

The other reason why Rabat is backing Madrid in the ongoing tension with the Catalan government, Bennis continues, is that Morocco respects the Treaty of Friendship and Good Neighborliness concluded with Spain in July 1991.

The treaty put a premium on the defense of each country’s sovereignty, stresses the analyst.

By supporting the position of the Spanish government, Morocco is honoring this agreement, which clearly stipulates that both countries respect the sovereignty of each and “refrain from interfering in its internal affairs.”

Desk-bound millennials could be on the brink of a ‘creativity crisis’ according to new research.

A recent survey discovered that 64% of people felt that they were failing to live up to their full creative potential, and that figure increased to 71% among 18-34 year olds. The study, carried out by the people behind the art app Bloom, also found that nearly three quarters of those surveyed regretted not opting for more creative careers.

The cost of having limited opportunities to express our creativity is becoming clearer. 85% of survey respondents believed that working on a creative activity allowed them to feel more relaxed and helped to relieve stress – suggesting that a life devoid of that creativity might have a negative effect on happiness and well being.

Police in the northern Moroccan city of Tetouan attempted to stop a 13-year-old girl from forming a union with a man 17 years her senior, according to Morocco World News. 

The ceremony, which the family revealed was an engagement, not a wedding, was taking place in a room in the downtown area of the city. 

Upon questioning, the girl's family said that the girl was not "being forced" into the union, emphasizing that it was "her decision." 

The ceremony reportedly continued after police left, according to Morocco World News. 

Photos of the ceremony began making the rounds on social media, drawing criticism and backlash soon after.

"When daughters are seen like 'crops' that need to be 'sold' and 'consumed' before they become corrupt."

that's all the effect of  the rape culture that exist hardly in Morocco 

WHAT IS RAPE CULTURE?

EXAMPLES OF RAPE CULTURE

• Blaming the victim (“She asked for it!”)
• Trivializing sexual assault (“Boys will be boys!”)
• Sexually explicit jokes
• Tolerance of sexual harassment
• Inflating false rape report statistics
• Publicly scrutinizing a victim’s dress, mental state, motives, and history
• Gratuitous gendered violence in movies and television
• Defining “manhood” as dominant and sexually aggressive
• Defining “womanhood” as submissive and sexually passive
• Pressure on men to “score”
• Pressure on women to not appear “cold”
• Assuming only promiscuous women get raped
• Assuming that men don’t get raped or that only “weak” men get raped
• Refusing to take rape accusations seriously
• Teaching women to avoid getting raped

VICTIM BLAMING

Why Is It Dangerous?

What Does Victim-Blaming Look Like?

HOW CAN MEN AND WOMEN COMBAT RAPE CULTURE AND VICTIM BLAMING?

• Avoid using language that objectifies or degrades women
• Speak out if you hear someone else making an offensive joke or trivializing rape
• If a friend says they have been raped, take your friend seriously and be supportive
• Think critically about the media’s messages about women, men, relationships, and violence
• Be respectful of others’ physical space even in casual situations
• Let survivors know that it is not their fault
• Hold abusers accountable for their actions: do not let them make excuses like blaming the victim, alcohol, or drugs for their behavior
• Always communicate with sexual partners and do not assume consent
• Define your own manhood or womanhood. Do not let stereotypes shape your actions.
• Be an Active Bystander!

• In the end  Sexual assault is NEVER the victim’s fault. Sexual assault is a violent attack on an individual, not a spontaneous crime of sexual passion. For a victim, it is a humiliating and degrading act. No one “asks” for or deserves this type of attack.

“In a democracy, the principle of accountability holds that government officials — whether elected or appointed by those who have been elected — are responsible to the citizenry for their decisions and actions.”

Since King Mohammed IV’s recent strong-worded speech he addressed to the Moroccans on Throne Day, national, international political analysts and international media are still commenting and analyzing the Moroccan monarch’s discourse in which he slammed on Moroccan politicians and public officials for neglect of their duties, and failing to meet aspirations of the people.

King Mohammed VI warned that the “evolution” in politics and development “has not led to the kind of positive reaction” when dealing with the real aspirations and concerns of Moroccan people.

He affirmed that the development policies remain sound, while the problem lies with lagging mentalities, as well as with the inability in practicing and innovating.

“The practices of some elected officials induce a number of citizens, especially young people, to shun political life,” he deplored.

It is no secret that there remain many unanswered questions, but on one matter there is not an open question: The reforms initiated by King Mohammed should be greeted with gratitude and respect. At long last there is another model for the Arab future, one that Americans and Europeans should embrace wholeheartedly. It is true that there are still challenges ahead of the democracy path in Morocco but the most important is that Moroccans (civil society, political parties and most important youth) have made their irreversible choice to continue their peaceful struggle towards full democracy. Democracy, therefore in this part of the Arab region, is no more a myth. It is a reality.

It is generally known that in a democracy, the principle of accountability holds that government officials — whether elected or appointed by those who have been elected — are responsible before their constituents and all citizens with utterly no exception, for their decisions and actions. For officials to be held accountable, the principle of full transparency requires that the decisions and actions of those in government are open to public scrutiny and the public has a right to access government information. These are the core principles of democratic governance that will deny any to become arbitrary and self-serving. Without accountability and transparency, democracy is impossible.

Since the enthronement of King Mohammed VI in 1999, Morocco has made its irreversible choice : it will not end its process of democratization and will not move away from its friends and allies in the West. Morocco, as a strong, stable, and secure Islamic state will become a beacon for others and a model for those who choose to recognize the will of their people. Now, arguably for the first time in decades, there is an alternative to ideological repression in the Arab community. Morocco is not yet an exemplar of Jeffersonian liberalism, but it is on a path paved with democratic principles.

But a constitution and an election, while essential building blocks for democracy, are not in themselves dispositive. What counts is where the leaders want to take this North African nation. Will it move inexorably to democracy? Or will it backslide with pressure from other Arab states?

“It is high time this principle were implemented in full. Just as the law applies equally to all citizens, it must be applied, first and foremost, to all officials, without distinction or discrimination, and in all of the Kingdom’s regions,” King Mohammed VI stated in a firm tone, announcing “This is the dawn of a new era in which there is no difference between officials and citizens as far as civic rights and obligations are concerned; nor is there room for shirking responsibility or avoiding sanctions”.

“Morocco must come first: before political parties, before elections and before senior positions,” the Monarch insisted.

The royal speech was frank and strong -worded lambasting the Moroccan service civil for its poor governance and weak performance. It is no secret that the King is leading an administrative revolution and the responsibility of political parties in government will make Morocco stronger in facing any development. An administrative revolution that will prioterize public and national interest against personal or politicized ones. Only accountability and transparency will lead Morocco towards democratic governance.

RABAT, Aug 5  - Despite an overall increase in job creation, Morocco's official unemployment rate slightly rose to 9.3 percent in the second quarter from 9.1 percent during the same period last year, the planning agency said on Saturday, citing an increase in the active population by 107,000 people.

Services and construction created 19,000 and 7,000 jobs respectively, according to Saturday's report. Manufacturing lost 4,000 jobs.

Heavy rainfall contributed to a favorable harvest, resulting in 52,000 new jobs in agriculture, which accounts for some 15 percent of Morocco's gross domestic product and employs more than half its workforce.

Informal labor abounds in Morocco, making it hard to produce reliable employment figures.

Last year, along with the rest of North Africa, the country suffered its worst drought in 30 years, and its cereal harvest declined by more than 70 percent. This year's cereal harvest saw a 203 percent increase over last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

The finance ministry has revised up its growth forecast for the year from 4.5 percent to 4.8 percent, as agriculture recovers from the drought. The economy grew by 1.6 percent in 2016.

At the 28th African Union (AU) Summit held in Addis Ababa, King Mohammed IV said: “A New Africa will make the most of its potential since our continent boasts tremendous assets. Morocco wants to contribute to the emergence of that New Africa. We owe this to our peoples. We owe it to our youths. The promise of a better, more prosperous future should no longer be an empty slogan or mere wishful thinking. It is our duty to match words with action for the sake of our future generations – for the sake of a New Africa.”

In another Royal message to the participants in the Crans Montana Forum held in Dakhla from March 12-14, King Mohammed VI stressed that “Morocco’s African policy is based on a comprehensive, integrated and inclusive approach designed to promote peace and stability, encourage sustainable human development and safeguard the cultural and spiritual identity of our populations, while respecting the universal values of human rights.”

“Morocco has been working untiringly to help forge a modern, bold, entrepreneurial and open Africa; an African continent which is proud of its identity, which derives its vibrancy from its cultural heritage and which is capable of transcending outdated ideologies,” he said

The King acknowledged that “the borders inherited from colonization often continue to be a major source of tension and conflict,” and that “Africa is a continent with growing and unsettling security issues”; but he stressed that “Africa’s tremendous human and natural resources should, instead, be a powerful catalyst for regional integration,” and urged that “It is up to us — Africans — to innovate in order to turn them into open spaces where fruitful exchange and interaction can flourish between African states.

At the Moroccan-Ivorian Economic Forum, held in Abidjan on February 24 2014, King Mohammed VI laid out a compelling vision for Africa’s development – He said that “This objective [prosperity for future generations] will even be more readily attainable when Africa overcomes its Afro-pessimism and unlocks its intellectual and material potential as well as that of all African peoples. Just imagine what our continent will look like, once it frees itself of its constraints and burdens”

Morocco is and will continue to be present in Africa and reinforce south-south cooperation to contribute to the development of the African continent and collaborate with American and European allies to bring peace and stability to this continent.