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Morocco is a North African country. Located in the
so-called Maghreb, the Kingdom of Morocco is bathed by
the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Mediterranean
Sea to the north, and is bordered by Algeria to the east
and south, and Western Sahara to the southwest. It
covers a total area of 446 550 km2. The
capital is Rabat, with a population of 1 618 700
inhabitants (2004), with other cities, such as
Casablanca, the largest in the country, with 3 741 200
inhabitants, Tangiers (629 800 inhab.) And Fez (1,019)
300 inhab.). Morocco is characterized by being a
mountainous country, standing out two mountain ranges:
the Rif, with northwest-southeast orientation, which is,
geologically, part of the southern ranges of the Iberian
Peninsula, and whose highest point is the mountain
Tidirhine (2456 m); and the Atlas, in the center of the
country, with east-west orientation, whose highest point
is Mount Tubkal (4165 m). To the east is the Muluya
basin, a lowland, semi-arid region created by the
erosion of the Muluya River. Further east and southeast,
there are the high plateaus, with an altitude of about
1000 meters. In the south, the arid lands of the Sahara
begin.
Climate
The Mediterranean influence is a striking feature of the
Moroccan climate, especially in the northern coastal
areas. The winter is humid and mild and the summer is
very dry and hot. In the South, the climate is hot
desert.
Economy
The economy of this country is based on agriculture,
services and manufacturing and mining. The arable land
covers 8.5 million hectares and provides production of
wheat, corn, barley, citrus fruits, sugar cane and
cotton, among others. Mining is focused on the
extraction of phosphates. The main products of the
manufacturing industries are food products, textiles,
leather goods and fertilizers. Tourism is an important
source of revenue. Morocco's main trading partners are
France, Spain, the United States of America and Germany.
Population
In 2006, the population was 33 241 259 inhabitants, who
live mainly in the flat areas to the north and west of
the Atlas chain. The birth and death rates are,
respectively, 21.98% and 5.58%. Average life expectancy
is 70.94 years. The value of the Human Development Index
(HDI) is 0.606 and the value of the Gender-adjusted
Development Index (IDG) is 0.590 (2001). It is estimated
that, in 2025, the population will be 42 553 000
inhabitants.
Arabs represent about 70% of the population and
Berbers 30%; all other ethnicities do not correspond to
1%. The dominant religion is the Sunni Muslim (99%). The
official language is Arabic.
History
The history of Morocco begins between 475 and 450 a. C.,
when a territory is referenced on the coast of the
North-West Africa where several Berber tribes lived
under the Phoenician occupation. Until the emergence of
the Muslim Empire in the 7th century d. C., Morocco was,
first, a privileged ally of Rome, being, later, annexed
to the Roman Empire as integral part of the region of
Mauritania. In the middle of the 11th century, the
Berber confederation of Almoravids gained full control
of Morocco, while strengthening Muslim possessions in
the Iberian Peninsula. Later, in the 12th century,
another Berber clan, the Almohadas, took power, being
deposed in 1269 by the Marinids, who ruled until the
middle of the 15th century. With the fall of this clan,
the country was divided into small independent states, a
situation that lasted until 1550, when the Sadis tribe
established its order over the entire Moroccan
territory. However, in 1415, Morocco lost the city of
Ceuta to Portugal, but managed, in 1436, to save Tangier
from Portuguese pretensions. But it was not at this time
that Morocco was really threatened by foreign
intervention. In 1859, Spain annexed Morocco, an
annexation that would end when Moroccan sultan Moulay
Abd al-Hafid accepted, in 1912, the status of French
protectorate.
Before obtaining independence on March 2, 1956,
Morocco experienced a situation of permanent
governmental instability, as a result of the growing
independence movement, which began in the 1930s,
supported mainly by Sultan Sidi Muhammad. This spirit
became widespread during the Second World War, both in
French Morocco and in the northern territory, controlled
by Spain since 1934, thanks to the relationship
established with British and American troops stationed
in the country, a relationship that allowed a new
contact with the external reality. The following years
were marked by several political facts, of which, first,
the officialization of the Moroccan intention to be
independent stands out. This happened in 1951, when
Sultan Sidi Muhammad, on the anniversary of his
ascension on 18 November, he declared he was hopeful of
awakening Morocco's total sovereignty. Second, when the
Algerian rebellion broke out in 1954, serving as an
inspiring source for the most radical independenceists,
guerrillas began to attack French interests along the
border with the Spanish zone. With the situation
becoming unsustainable, France grants independence to
Morocco, a decision that took the Spanish protectorate
by surprise. However, on April 7 of that year, Sidi
Muhammad managed to persuade Spain to follow the French
example, although it was only in 1958, a year after a
Moroccan military action against the Spaniards, that the
Ifni region was granted unconditionally. Even so, the
cities of Ceuta and Melilla remain under the aegis of
the Spanish Crown. serving as an inspiring source for
the most radical independenceists, guerrillas began to
attack French interests along the border with the
Spanish zone. With the situation becoming unsustainable,
France grants independence to Morocco, a decision that
took the Spanish protectorate by surprise. However, on
April 7 of that year, Sidi Muhammad managed to persuade
Spain to follow the French example, although it was only
in 1958, a year after a Moroccan military action against
the Spaniards, that the Ifni region was granted
unconditionally. Even so, the cities of Ceuta and
Melilla remain under the aegis of the Spanish
Crown. serving as an inspiring source for the most
radical independenceists, guerrillas began to attack
French interests along the border with the Spanish
zone. With the situation becoming unsustainable, France
grants independence to Morocco, a decision that took the
Spanish protectorate by surprise. However, on April 7 of
that year, Sidi Muhammad managed to persuade Spain to
follow the French example, although it was only in 1958,
a year after a Moroccan military action against the
Spaniards, that the Ifni region was granted
unconditionally. Even so, the cities of Ceuta and
Melilla remain under the aegis of the Spanish
Crown. France grants Morocco independence, a decision
that took the Spanish protectorate by surprise. However,
on April 7 of that year, Sidi Muhammad managed to
persuade Spain to follow the French example, although it
was only in 1958, a year after a Moroccan military
action against the Spaniards, that the Ifni region was
granted unconditionally. Even so, the cities of Ceuta
and Melilla remain under the aegis of the Spanish
Crown. France grants Morocco independence, a decision
that took the Spanish protectorate by surprise. However,
on April 7 of that year, Sidi Muhammad managed to
persuade Spain to follow the French example, although it
was only in 1958, a year after a Moroccan military
action against the Spaniards, that the Ifni region was
granted unconditionally. Even so, the cities of Ceuta
and Melilla remain under the aegis of the Spanish Crown.
The shift of French control over Morocco into the
hands of the sultan and the Independent Party Istiqlăl
proceeded calmly. In August 1957, Sidi Muhammad
transformed Morocco into a kingdom, using the title of
king. When, in 1959, Istiqlăl split into two groups
(one, covering most elements of the Istiqlăl,
conservative and obedient to Muhammad 'Allăl al-Făsi,
Sidi's supporter; another, of a republican and socialist
character, which adopted the name of National Union of
Popular Forces), Sidi Muhammad took the opportunity to
distance the figure of the king from the parties,
elevating him to an arbitration role. Such a political
maneuver contributed decisively to the strengthening of
the monarchy, as was verified in the 1962 referendum,
already with Mulay Hassan, son of Sidi (died in 1961),
as king Hassan II, in which a constitution of a
monarchical nature was approved. A year later,
parliamentary elections were held that took the
political situation to a dead end. This fact allowed the
concentration of powers in Hassan II, as demonstrated in
the Constitution of 1970, which did not survive an
attempted coup in 1971. Another Constitution succeeded
him in 1972, which was only effectively implemented
after another attempt. coup d'état in August of that
year.
The year 1974 marked the beginning of a new
orientation of Hassan II's policy, from the moment when
Morocco declared its claim on the Spanish Sahara, rich
in ore (mainly phosphate), a claim that was realized in
November 1975 , with the advance of the "Green March",
made up of 350,000 unarmed volunteers, over the
protectorate of Spain, which avoided the conflict and
led to the signing of an agreement in which Moroccan
ambitions were satisfied.
However, there have been many obstacles to Moroccan
politics: first, the Polisario guerrilla struggle
(Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia and the Rio
do Ouro), supported both by Algeria and later by Libya,
and that he even refused the results of a referendum
promoted by Hassan II in 1981; second, condemnation by
the United Nations; and, third, the creation of Western
Sahara in 1989, which has been recognized by an
increasing number of countries. In 1994, the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, Boutros-Ghali,
proposed to deepen the negotiations with the aim of
promoting an electoral registration process as complete
as possible, so that a future referendum would have
legitimacy acceptable to both parties.
It is also worth noting the role that Morocco played
in the Middle East peace process, through a balanced
relationship between Hassan II and the warring parties,
the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and
Israel, which allowed, namely, the establishment of
economic interests in those regions.
In 1999, after the death of Hassan II, Muhammad (or
Mohammed) VI, his son, took the Moroccan throne. The new
king established a government of unity, approaching the
population and distancing himself from Islamic
extremists: among other government decisions of
democratic content, he appointed a woman as a spokesman
for the kingdom, opened the country to investments by
foreign companies and began the process of preparing for
the liberalization of trade between the country and the
European Union.
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