Mohammed VI: Ten-year reign, reforms ... and black points

RABAT- Ten years after his enthronement, King Mohammed VI of Morocco remains an enigma for most of his compatriots,

• Ten years after his enthronement, King Mohammed VI of Morocco remains an enigma for most of his compatriots, who paint a mixed picture of a decade of reforms and the persistence of black points.
  
      Described as reserved, the Moroccan sovereign has never accepted an interview, his interventions are rare, and absolute secrecy surrounding what goes on behind the walls of “Mechouar”, the royal palace in Rabat.
  
      By accessing the Alawite throne on 23 July 1999 at the age of 35, the new king had signified that he wanted to continue the policy of openness that began at the end of the reign of his father Hassan II.
  
      Appears, in the beginning, on a jet-ski or sports cars, skiing in Courchevel, Raï fan, a friend of American rapper P. Diddy and Johnny Hallyday, Mohammed VI had projected an image of a “cool king.”
  
      A breath of fresh air had blown on a country anxious to turn the page of “lead years”.
  
      On 21 March 2002, his marriage to a modest 24-year-old scientist, Lalla Salma (Bennani of her maiden name), had confirmed this reputation for modernity.
  
      Ten years have passed since the death of Hassan II and, despite a perceptible disenchantment in a section of the population would have wished that things move more quickly, Morocco moves.
  
      In 2008, the country has won the precious EU “advanced status” which will eventually free access to European markets and establish infrastructure unparalleled in the Maghreb.
  
      The main cities are now connected by highways and the network will reach 1500 km in 2011 (against 100 in 1999). A project of Tangier-Casablanca TGV was launched, Rabat and Casablanca equipped with tramways.
  
      On the Mediterranean coast, a huge port, Tangier Med, was made in a bid to become the largest in Africa.
  
      The victims of “years of lead” were compensated at the end of a brave- even if not complete, since the perpetrators were not concerned about the Equity and Reconciliation Commission (IER).
  
      A new Family Code (Moudawana) was also adopted in 2004, giving women (almost) the same rights as men, despite the hostility of Islamist radicals.
  
      Commander of the Faithful (Amir al-Mouminine), Mohammed VI has also launched an ambitious restoration of the religious field to prevent the excesses of fundamentalist imams.
  
      Finally, despite some incidents of irritants course, newspapers can write about what they want if they do not challenge the official Sunni Malekite rite, the monarchy and territorial integrity.
  
      Some data and wilt voices come however make this picture a little idyllic.
  
      Thus, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH, independent) does not deprive endanger the independence of the judiciary, says that torture and arbitrary detention continue.
  
      And, despite the efforts of the authorities, corruption remains widespread at all levels. Approximately 40 percent of the population is still illiterate.
  
      Lastly, social inequalities persist and, in the report of Human Development 2007-2008 UNDP (United Nations Development), Morocco has an unflattering 126th place.
  
      Indeed, the blackest misery often meets the more insolent opulence. As in Casablanca, the economic capital of the country, where only a few kilometres separate the great slums of Sidi Moumen Anfa district, an enclave for millionaires who have nothing to envy to Beverley Hills.
  
      
      
  Ennaharonline/ M. O.