MOROCCO PROTESTERS REJECT MONARCHY’S REFORMS
An effort by Morocco’s King Mohammed VI to rewrite his country’s constitution has failed to temper the concerns of Morocco’s swelling cadre of protesters. Although Morocco has been spared much of the violence and unrest seen elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa, demonstrators have increasingly taken to the streets of the capital, Rabat, and other cities in peaceful protests demanding reforms to the country’s governing structure, and an end to political detention and corruption. The protesters are largely composed of union members, women, the unemployed, students and Islamists. King Mohammed first announced in March that he would strengthen the independence of the judiciary and divest some of the powers of the monarchy. But protesters are rejecting new constitutional drafts that begin to address those changes on the grounds they have been drafted by the king’s own coterie. “We want a new constitution but a constitution who comes from ‘la masse populaire,’ not from one person,” engineering student Tehani explains to CNN. (CNN, April 25, 2011)
FATAH, HAMAS SIGN UNITY DEAL, BUT QUESTIONS LINGER
Longtime Palestinian rivals Hamas and Fatah have reached a “historic” reconciliation deal, ending years of confrontation and acrimony sparked by a short civil war in 2007. During that conflict, Hamas effectively seized power in the Gaza Strip and rival Fatah forces fled to their stronghold in the West Bank. In the intervening years, each side has governed its own slice of territory, leaving governance in the Palestinian Territories figuratively and literally divided. Multiple previous attempts at reconciliation failed. The difference this time appears to have been the new government in Egypt, which served as a mediator in the talks and has begun fundamentally reorienting Egyptian foreign policy, including opening up diplomatic channels to both Hamas and Iran.
Some of the details of the agreement are still under negotiation, but Azzam al-Ahmad, head of Fatah’s negotiating team, has outlined the basic principles: “We have agreed to form a government composed of independent figures that would start preparing for presidential and parliamentary elections,” which are scheduled to be held in roughly eight months. Al-Ahmad and his Hamas counterpart, Mahmoud al Zahar, also said the two sides agreed on combining security forces and restructuring the PLO to accommodate Hamas. And, despite the accord, a new “unity” government may in fact exclude Hamas members to avoid the inevitable repercussions from the U.S. – which provides $470 million in annual aid to the Palestinian Authority – and Israel, which insists it will not engage in peace negotiations with a group committed to its destruction. (Tel Aviv Ha’aretz, April 27, 2011)
IRAN AND SAUDI BATTLE THROUGH BAHRAIN
The tiny island nation of Bahrain, situated in the Gulf between Saudi Arabia and Iran, is serving as a new battleground in a expanding proxy war between the two rival regional powers. Iran, majority Shi’ite and Persian, and Saudi Arabia, majority Sunni and Arab, have been at loggerheads for decades in a battle for influence in the Middle East and beyond, each seeking to portray itself as the pre-eminent Muslim power. That battle is now playing out in Bahrain, which is experiencing an unprecedented wave of social unrest that is fueling the regional proxy war. The government in Manama is run by the country’s Sunni minority, while the protesters in the streets are drawn largely from the increasingly disaffected Shi’ite majority. Saudi Arabia sent at least 1,000 troops and armored personnel carriers to Bahrain on March 14th to help the government suppress protests, and with this international assistance they have largely succeeded in subduing the movement. But resentment towards the Bahraini government and Saudi Arabia is growing among the Shi’ite community, which has been receiving moral – and potentially material – support from Iran. In Tehran, crowds have gathered in front of the Saudi Embassy and shouted “Death to al-Saud” and Iranian youths have hurled stones and firebombs at the building. Bahrain and the Sunni Arab states of the Gulf have accused Tehran’s ruling clerics of secretly backing the uprising. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, however, has said there is “evidence that the Iranians are trying to exploit the situation in Bahrain.” (Washington Post, April 22, 2011)
TAJIKISTAN’S ISLAMIC PARTY ON THE RISE
Tajikistan’s Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP), the only officially registered Islamic party in Central Asia, is “rebranding” itself as a social and economic organization and defender of the common man. The IRP holds only two of 96 seats in the bicameral assembly. However, the group has begun expanding its presence across the country, using social networking tools such as Facebook and YouTube and to try and attract Tajikistan’s younger generation. The IRP rushed to the aid of victims of a massive flood last May, distributing money and food, and winning hearts and minds in the process. Now, IRP leader Kabiri says, “We believe people expect from an Islamic party much more than what they would expect from just a political party.” Kabiri has also said that his party’s aim is not an Islamic state but an “Islamic society,” and while the IRP is winning over new voters, many are still skeptical, convinced the party is concealing its true agenda in “a long-term plan to come to power one day.” Still, Tajik youth seem receptive to their message; as one twenty-year-old adherent explains, “We are more interested in everyday problems like unemployment, and this party’s leaders address exactly what is bothering us most.” (Radio Free Europe, May 1, 2011)