Myrtus

Why no Dutch Obama?

Radio Netherlands says not just yet, but the potential is definitely there.

The person with the most potential to be "da man" is currently Moroccan-born Ahmed Aboutaleb.

Mr. Aboutaleb was recently voted Mayor of Rotterdam by Rotterdam's City Council, making him the first ever Mayor in the Netherlands who is not a Dutch native.

Why no Dutch Obama? - Radio Netherlands Worldwide

The United States has a black president, but the Netherlands has never had a black prime minister. And plenty of other countries have had women heads of government - so why not the Netherlands?

The explanation is simple, says Radio Netherlands Worldwide's political editor Hans Andringa. It's simply a matter of time. "New Dutch" people have only been in the Netherlands for a matter of decades, and they have been active in politics for an even shorter time.

"Before you get to the top in a political party, so you're as widely recognised and acknowledged as you need to be to become a party leader, it takes a long time."

It has taken years for the number of MPs with ethnic minority backgrounds to build up to the present level, yet the figure is still no higher than eight percent of the total.

Tensions
There are even fewer people from ethnic minorities in leading political positions. One exception is the Moroccan-born Achmed Aboutaleb. Currently the deputy social affairs minister, he has just been appointed mayor of Rotterdam. This has a particular resonance, because in recent years the city has been associated with tensions between white Dutch people and ethnic minorities, and was the home ground of the murdered rightwing populist politician Pim Fortuyn. Political commentators have pointed out that if Rotterdam had an elected mayor, it seems unlikely that Mr Aboutaleb would have made it to the post.

AD.nl - Binnenland - Heftig onthaal voor Aboutaleb

Other interesting news on Radio Netherlands:

The untold story of the 1950s Berber uprising in northern Morocco.....

Search for my father - Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Fifty years ago, the people of Morocco's Rif mountains rebelled against the central government. The uprising was brutally put down by the Moroccan army and many of the Rif mountains' native Berbers left for Europe. The world's media didn't pay much attention to the 1958 rebellion, but it left its mark on many people's lives, including that of Mohamed Amezian, son of the rebel leader.

Obama City.....

Obama City, Japan - Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Barack Obama's victory is also being greeted with enthusiasm in Japan - especially in the city of Obama. The residents of the city, which is in the south near Kyoto, support the Democratic candidate mainly because of the shared name, but they have political reasons too.

Afterthought....

Last Sunday I got a phone call from my nephew Chakib who lives in Amsterdam along with the rest of my family.  He told me to hold on a minute because he had a surprise for me. 

So I waited for a few seconds and oh what great surprise!

My childhood best friend Saida, whom I hadn't seen or talked to for close to two decades, got on the phone and....

Hiiiiiiii Nashia!!!!!!

Saida?  OMG I can't believe it!

Saida and I share so many memories, getting in trouble together and having such a great time growing up together. Eventually we went our seperate ways when we were about 19 years old and only seeing each other in passing occasionally.

Imagine my surprise when the first thing she said to me was:

Hey, Ahmed Aboutaleb is now Mayor of Rotterdam hahaaa!

I said: Yes, I read about that in the news.  Isn't it awesome?

She said: Remember when you had a fight with him?

Hmm me a fight with Aboutaleb?  What are you talking about?

Saida: Hahaa well, maybe not a fight, more like an argument.

I said: I used to run into him here and there, we knew some of the same people and I do remember having a few exchanges with him, but an argument? 

If I did, I don't remember.

Saida goes: Well, maybe not an argument, but more like a discussion about politics and I remember clearly when you said you thought he was an arrogant prick and very stubborn...hahaaaa!

Oh WOW really?  I swear I don't remember that, but let me tell you something.  I've been following his political career in the news for many years now and I'm so proud of him for all that he has accomplished in such a short period of time, despite all the apposition he had to face not just in Dutch society but within the Moroccan community as well. 

Saida then quickly changed the subject.

L'Express banned over Mohamed image

Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco banned French news magazine L'Express this week for insulting Islam by failing to cover prophet Mohamed's face properly.

The Associated Press: French magazine banned; Some say it offends Islam

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco have banned this week's issue of L'Express International, a French newsmagazine, saying its cover story titled "The Jesus-Muhammad Shock" offended Islam.

The title is the same as a book by one of the magazine's chief editors.

The newsweekly L'Express said on its Web site that the series of articles comparing Christianity and Islam was inspired by a meeting this week in Rome between Christian and Muslim scholars, which aims to "help the dialogue between Islam and Christianity."

L'Express said it did not understand the ban on its international edition in North African countries, particularly because of the pains it took to adhere to Islamic norms. The magazine covered the face of Islam's prophet, Muhammad, with a white veil in side-by-side cover portraits of Jesus and Muhammad, in line with Islamic law.

The French edition of the magazine leaves the face uncovered.

Morocco is granted advanced status by the European Union

This is great news! 

Morocco will not only continue to benefit from the European economic exchange, now it will also be able to participate in European civil and military crisis management operations, Europol, the European Air Security Agency, the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction among other things.

I think I'll be moving to Morocco soon.

Maghreb Arabe Presse: Advanced status, sign of EU confidence in Moroccan model, FM

Paris, Oct. 14 (MAP) - The advanced status granted by the European Union (EU) to Morocco is a "sign of the confidence placed by the Union in the Moroccan model and the reforms undertaken in the kingdom," Foreign minister, Taieb Fassi-Fihri said.

    In a statement to Radio France Internationale (RFI), Fassi-Fihri stressed that the advanced status is also "a commitment of the European Union vis-à-vis a neighboring country, which has for a long time expressed its desire to further cooperate with the Union."

    This status, the minister added, is also a commitment of the EU to support Morocco in the large scale reforms that were initiated at the political level with the consolidation of the rule of law, the improvement of the judicial system, as well as the modernization of infrastructure and the fight against poverty.

    Fassi-Fihri also voiced hope that this open perspective with Morocco extends in the best conditions to a united Arab Maghreb  (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia) and beyond this regional entity to all the Arab partners in the Mediterranean space.

    In an interview published Tuesday by the Moroccan daily “L’Economiste”, Fassi-Fihri said “this advanced status comes to cement our Association Agreement which entered into force in 2000 and to enhance the European Neighborhood Policy.”

    The European Union decided, on Monday, to grant Morocco an Advanced Status, marking Morocco's special standing in the Euro-Mediterranean partnership.

Espionage

This post is in response to the following statement that someone made on the survey: "J'ai le sentiment que la these et pour les barbus." (Sorry, if I wrote this wrong...Loosely translated it means "I have the feeling that this thesis is for the bearded [Islamists].")

I am not a spy. Although, most likely I would not tell you if I were :) If you would like to verify that I am actually doing this for my education through an institution of higher learning, you can email me at rebecca.robinson@asu.edu. I understand people have reasons for being suspicious.

Je ne suis pas un espion:) Si vous voulez vérifier que je suis effectivement une eleve faisant des études social vous pouvez m'envoyer un email à rebecca.robinson@asu.edu. Je comprends les gens ont raisons d'être suspicieux.

Personal Questions- Oh, la la

Some of the respondents have asked why I ask demographic and personal questions (for example, about religion and politics). I am not just being nosy :) When doing studies on groups of people, it is important to know about the population you are investigating not only so other researchers can improve on the information you gather but also so you know if the information garnered from your research can be applied to other groups or if your study is representative of the larger population to which it belongs. I hope this makes sense. Also, these surveys are completely anonymous and, other than the information provided on the first page, I have no idea who is responding to the other parts of the survey. I hope this eases your concerns a little. 

Certains répondants ont demandé pourquoi je demande à la démographie et les questions personnelles (par exemple, au sujet de la religion et politique). Je ne suis pas juste être curieux:) En faisant des études sur des groupes de personnes, il est important de connaître la population que vous êtes d'enquêter non seulement pour d'autres chercheurs peuvent améliorer les informations sur vous recueillir mais aussi pour vous pour savoir si l'information recueillie à partir de votre la recherche peut être appliquée à d'autres groupes ou si votre étude est représentative de l'ensemble de la population à laquelle il appartient. J'espère que cela fait sens. En outre, ces enquêtes sont totalement anonymes et, autres que les renseignements fournis sur la première page, je n'ai aucune idée de qui est de répondre aux autres parties de l'enquête. J'espère que cela facilite vos préoccupations un peu.

Blogoma Research Survey

Najia has graciously invited me to her blog to promote my research project on the Blogoma and to invite you all to take my survey. My research question is the following: How do Moroccan bloggers and people that blog about Morocco discuss Islam in their blogs, particularly as it relates to politics? The purpose of my research is to demonstrate that Islam is not the monolithic ideology that it is presented by the state and media in many non-Muslim countries. I am not Muslim but I try to avoid stereotyping a religion that stretches over several continents and that over a billion of people identify with and/or practice and I try to avoid the biases with which the American people are constantly inundated. The survey is offered in both English and French. I apologize for not being able to offer it in Arabic as well but I could not afford the translation software; however, I have a colleague that can read Arabic so if you would prefer to answer the questions in Arabic please feel free to do so. If you are interested in sharing your knowledge and opinions, please follow these links:

Najia m'a gracieusement invité à son blog pour promouvoir mon projet de recherche sur la Blogoma et de vous inviter tous à prendre mon questionnaire. Ma question de recherche est la suivante: Comment les blogueurs marocains et les personnes qui  bloguent au sujet du maroc discutent de l'islam dans leurs blogs, en particulier en ce qui a trait à la politique? Le but de ma recherche est de démontrer que l'islam n'est pas l'idéologie monolithique qui est présenté par l'État et les médias dans de nombreux pays non musulmans. Je ne suis pas musulmane, mais je cherche à éviter les stéréotypes d'une religion qui s'étend sur plusieurs continents et que plus d'un milliard de personnes s'identifient et/ou  pratiquent et je tente d'éviter les préjugés avec lesquels le peuple américain est constamment inondées. Le questionnaire est offerte en français et en anglais. Je m'excuse de ne pas être en mesure de l'offrir en arabe aussi bien mais je ne pouvais pas payer les logiciels de traduction, mais j'ai une collègue qui peut lire l'arabe si vous préférez répondre aux questions en arabe allez y. Si vous êtes intéressé à partager vos connaissances et vos opinions, s'il vous plaît suivez ces liens:


Part I: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=DKbkAENWXQamCNJlrGKatA_3d_3d

Part II: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=d8FN2YjW1Agp7zxpWjMA4A_3d_3d

Part III: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=E_2fakeRx2qPMtYhRseiA_2bAw_3d_3d

Part IV: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=l4ZB1Y5vY8XKafZH36kXoA_3d_3d

Part V: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=IM2Q8eoW_2fTcDAbAfHugTdw_3d_3d

Part VI: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=b1IwrsnPcKRuUn732Qrn9A_3d_3d

Thank you in advance for your participation and for your feedback on how to improve the survey! Thanks again, Najia!!!

Merci d'avance pour votre participation et vos commentaires sur la façon d'améliorer le questionnaire! Merci encore, Najia!

Moroccan diplomats withdrawn from Netherlands in spy case

nrc.nl - International - Sacked Moroccan police officer leads to diplomatic row

Morocco has withdrawn two diplomats from the Netherlands after complaints from Dutch foreign minister Maxime Verhagen about "detrimental practices" by the Moroccan authorities two months ago.

The alleged offences are related to the case of a police officer in Rotterdam who was sacked this summer on suspicion of spying for the Moroccan secret service. The man was officially fired for "a severe breach of duty". While it has not yet been decided whether to prosecute the man, the case has caused a political stir in the Netherlands.

Previous post: Moroccan Spy?

Hot Topic

What exactly is the purpose of the Blogma?

I'm sure everyone has a different answer to that question, but go take a look at what what Ahmed T. has to say and see what you think.

The Blogma’s Whims « A Moroccan About the world around him

Ahmed says:

"Unlike many of my fellow bloggers, I don’t see the blogma as an integrated force of opinion."

My response:

I don't know about that, Ahmed, it might just be your impression.  Has anyone in the Blogma or anywhere else made such a claim? 

The beginnings of the Blogma started out about four years ago with a handful of people visiting each other's blogs back and forth pretty much having fun socializing, discussing various issues of daily life, and thanks to Adel's Blogma aggregator it soon became of sort like a network. The way I see it today is that it hasn't changed much since then, except for a few individuals here and there standing out more as social activists.

Why make it out to be as anything but a social network?  Socializing as a basic human need requires freedom of expression.  To my knowledge the only times the Blogma came together as a unit (more or less in self-defense) is when that basic human need became endangered.  If I remember correctly, the first time that happened was in January last year with the Nichane case, when the editor of Nichane got slapped with a jail sentence for making jokes about religion.  The second time it happened was when Morocco blocked YouTube in may last year and then the Fouad Mourtada case recently and now Mohamed Erraji's case. 

The value of the Blogma in my view, lies within each individual as a member of the world community with a touch of that famous Moroccan pluralism along with an outgoing personality.....and that includes non-Moroccans as well.

I think for the most part your observations are correct, but I don't agree with the fear factor you bring into the equation.  The blogma will never be a unified front on politics, so there is nothing to fear because Moroccans generally prefer minding their own business unless their own personal basic human needs are threatened.

Happy Day for Mohamed Erraji

Happy day for justice and for us all.

This just in from the "Free Moroccan Blogger Mohammed Erraji" Facebook group:

Subject: Thank you - Merci - شكرا

Mohamed Erraji is Free

Thursday September 18th. The court of appeals in Agadir has overturned the decision by the court of first instance and has decided to abandon all charges against blogger Mohamed Erraji.

On behalf of his family and friends, we thank all those who stood by them during these difficult times. Without your support this positive outcome might not have been possible. Thank you very much, thank you for everything!

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Mohamed Erraji  est libre

Le jeudi 18 septembre, la Cour d'appel d'Agadir a annulé la peine infligée en première instance au blogueur Mohamed Erraji et a décidé l'abandon de toutes les poursuites contre lui.
Mohamed Erraji est définitivement acquitté. Au nom de la famille et des amis de Mohamed Erraji, nous remercions toutes celles et tous ceux qui ont été à leurs côtés durant cette épreuve difficile. Merci beaucoup, merci pour tout !

------------------------------------------

محمد الراجي يعانق الحرية

ألغت محكمة الاستئناف بأكادير اليوم الخميس حكم المحكمة الابتدائية الصادر في حق المدون محمد الراجي والتصدي بالحكم بعدم المتابعة .
وكانت محكمة الاستئناف قد أصدرت يوم11 شتنبر الجاري قرارا يقضي بتمتيع الراجي بالسراح المؤقت معللة قرارها بكون المتابعة أمام المحكمة الابتدائية “لم تراع بعض الإجراءات المسطرية الجوهرية المنصوص عليها في قانون الصحافة، لاسيما عدم احترام كيفية إحالة القضية على المحكمة، ولآجال الاستدعاء المباشر”.
--------------------

Congratulations to Mohamed Erraji!

Wishing you all the best! (:

But justice will not be fully served till those who wronged him have been diciplined accordingly. This should never happen again.

This is the perfect opportunity for the justice system to prove it's worth and build the necessary trust. The ultimate goal should be partnership and not constant strife between the citizens and the authorities in Morocco.

For the sake of peace and harmony, let us work together for a country we can all be proud of.
God bless!

Moroccan Spy?

A Moroccan-Dutch police sergeant in Rotterdam was fired on grounds of "serious neglegence of duty" after the Dutch national security service determined that he may have been spying for the Moroccan secret service. 

The Rotterdam police department decided not to seek formal prosecution to charge the ex-cop with espionage due to insufficient evidence.

Sounds weird doesn't it?

AD.nl - Rotterdam - Politieagent spion Marokko

Update 9/17

Dutch newspapers are now making a big deal out of the fact that this so-called Moroccan spy is now employed at the Rotterdam airport, not only raising the already existing level of paranoia towards Moroccans living in the Netherlands, but also as if to imply that allowing the ex-cop in question to work at the airport is like an open invitation for terrorist activity.  The media still refers to the ex-cop as a Moroccan spy, while the authorities clearly indicate that there was insufficient evidence to support that claim.

So what gives?

I would love to hear the ex-cop's own side of the story.

AD.nl - Rotterdam Stad - Marokkaanse spion werkt op vliegveld