MOROCCO ENTERS A NEW ERA
The constitutional reforms announced by the King of Morocco last month amid the popular uprisings in northern Africa and the Middle East would bring Morocco into a new era where the best possible structures, in terms of modernity, balance of power, accountability and human development, are to be put in place. Major protests have so far toppled regimes in Tunisia and Egypt, and have now spread to other Arab countries, including Libya, Bahrain and Yemen. Moroccan Ambassador, Ahmed Amaziane, said the reforms pledged by King Mohamed VI, which stressed independence of the judiciary, a regionalisation process, and expanding the power of the prime minister, would be enshrined in the amended constitution. ''Although these elements are already being practised, they were not really in black and white in the (present) constitution. Now we have the opportunity to incorporate all these into the proposed constitutional reforms,'' he told Bernama during a recent interview here. He added that a constitutional referendum would be held, most likely in June or September, to let the Moroccan people decide on whether to accept the reforms. Amaziane explained that the king has instructed a commission to consult all groups within Moroccan society, including political parties, the business community, civil society, trade unions and youths, to debate the proposed amendments to the constitution before it is drafted and sent to the king.
''Once they have given the draft to the king, he would see whether it comprises all the elements stated in his speech on March 9 and a referendum would then be held for the Moroccan people to approve the constitutional reforms,'' the ambassador said. ''With that, we solve the problem of legitimacy on who is speaking on behalf of the people of Morocco,'' he said, adding that a referendum was the most democratic way known to men to solve the legitimacy problem. The envoy added that during the Feb 20 protest movement in Morocco, various sections claimed that they were speaking on behalf of the Moroccan people. ''You have the young people from Facebook, the Islamists, the liberals speaking on behalf of the people of Morocco. With the referendum, the people can decide. If they don't like it, they can reject it,'' Amaziane said. Amaziane said that in Morocco the spectrum of views was wide - from the Islamists to the liberals - and also from people who want ''to go slowly about it,'' until a viable system is put in place, because if the country has a system that works, ''you cannot just scrap it and then put something which is new and you are not sure whether it is going to work. ''That is why the referendum is a very key issue in solving who is who and who is speaking on behalf of whom,'' he added.
Also, the ambassador dismissed the contention that the king proposed the constitutional reforms because of the popular uprisings in the North African and Middle Eastern countries. He pointed out that the process for all the elements in the proposed constitutional reforms started in 1999 when the king ascended the throne. ''Many people did not know that. That's why they think this is the response. Maybe the exact timing of the March 9 speech is due to the demonstration, but not the whole process as such,'' he added. ''The elements we are talking about were either started or had been announced during the last 10 years,'' he said, adding that some proposals, such as nominating the prime minister from the party which commanded the majority in parliament, had been practised but not put in ''black and white'' in the constitution. He pointed out that international observers have said that the Feb 20 protest movement in Morocco was not violent or tense because the protesters knew that initiatives had been taken to ensure that the country moved towards a more democratic process, as well as towards creating opportunities and equality for all citizens.
Amaziane noted that when King Mohamed came to power in 1999, the first thing he did was set up the Justice and Reconciliation body to look into all human rights abuses committed during his father's reign and, subsequently, those citizens who had been harmed were given compensation and offered apologies. The king was also responsible for the national human development initiatives and personally oversaw all programmes and projects to fight poverty and widen access to basic social services and education for poor people. Another important element is the regionalisation process, Amaziane said, adding that the king had already instructed a committee to look at how to manage a diverse country like Morocco, explaining that the regionalisation process would give the regions as much autonomy as possible in handling their local affairs. Amaziane added that prior to this, the regions were managed by the central government, which had more power, but the regionalisation process will see the regions gaining more power and freedom to run their own affairs, such as allowing their citizens to control the budget. Furthermore, each region would have its own investment centre, instead of having one office at the national level. This would save time as investors need only to go to the centre they want to invest in.
Asked how the reforms would affect Morocco's relationship with other countries, Amaziane said press reports indicated that foreign countries have praised the king for spearheading the reforms and responding to the people's requests. ''They said that the king's response was appropriate and very good, timing-wise and quality-wise also,'' he said. The king, in his March speech, described the constitutional reforms as a milestone in the consolidation of the country's distinctive model, which is based on democracy and the pursuit of development.
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