Rif’s plight/ Riffians demonstate en masse against Makhzen’s repression, neglect- Take a look into testimonies!

BY: Hana Saada

ALGIERS–  The Moroccan Makhzen regime is in trouble as the riffians rose up to achieve independence… Exclusive testimonies to Dzair Tube expose the real face of Mohammed VI’s regime and reveal shocking facts!

The royal palace of El-Makhzen is in panic after the honorable riffian diaspora responded favorably to the call for independence, taking to the streets en masse in a protest at the successive acts of abuse committed by the tyrannical ruling family.

Following France’s protests held a few days ago, the members of the community in Amsterdam went out to denounce the oppression of Mohammed VI’s colonial regime, urging the United Nations to look at their noble quest for freedom.

In exclusive testimonies to Dzair Tube, one of the demonstrators noted that these protests, which exceeded all expectations, represented a new wave of mass mobilization against the Makhzen, expressing hope that their legitimate right to independence will be fulfilled.

He added, in this vein, that the Rif community “believes in peaceful means to snatch their rights in  accordance with the guidance of the President of the Rural Republic, Muhammad Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi.”

He explained, “We call today, as we did in the past, the international community to assume its responsibility.”

In turn, a protester named Farouk stressed that “the rural awareness has begun to spread, and it is time to recover the land and expel the Moroccan occupier”.

And to add: “We hope that our cause will be on the agendas of international forums.”

On this occasion, Mr. Farouk sent a vibrant message to the international community, stressing that El Rif “is subject to all kinds of heinous crimes perpetrated by the Makhzen.”

Another protester said that the malicious maneuvers of the henchmen of Mohammed VI’s gang, through their media mouthpieces, aim to thwart the march of  freedom seekers.

He pointed to the issues which plague the region – high rates of poverty, unemployment, a media blockade and brutal tactics employed by the police to crush any unrest.

An American NGO calls for the release of the leader of the Rif demonstrations

On 19 January 2023, the European Parliament adopted the first resolution in 25 years criticising the fundamental rights and freedoms situation in Morocco. Among the various concerns expressed, the text refers to the repression in the northern region of Rif, traditionally marginalised by the state, reported Ricard González.

Between 2016 and 2017, a peaceful protest movement, known as the Hirak (Arabic for ‘movement’), emerged to demand more social investment.  The regime responded with force: hundreds of people were arrested, and the epicentre, the Riffian city of Al Hoceima, was completely taken over by the police. Even now, holding a demonstration in the Rif is impossible, and Hirak leaders, such as Nasser Zefzafi, are languishing in jail, with sentences of up to 20 years.

In a solidarity campaign that it launched, the American organization “Freedom House” called for the release of the leader of the demonstrations in the Rif (Morocco) Nasser Zefzafi, in prison for 7 years, and alerted to the deterioration of the state of his health due to the inhuman conditions of his detention.

The NGO indicated on its website that this campaign is part of the decline in freedoms that has lasted for years in Morocco, “as the regime intensifies its efforts to silence activists and human rights defenders “.

Nasser Zefzafi, who led the peaceful protests in the Rif, a rebellious region of Morocco, paid the price for his leadership. He was arrested in 2017 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Freedom House revealed  that “his family has long been steeped in political activism in the region. In the 1920s, his great-grandfather served as minister of the short-lived Rif Republic (established between 1921 and 1926 by illustrious warlord Abdelkrim el-Khattabi)”.

Thus, Zefzafi’s decision to serve as the key leader of the 2016 Hirak, “was not a surprise”, for the NGO. The figure of the Hirak of the Rif was propelled by the brutal murder, in October of the same year, by security agents, of Mohsin Fekri, a fish trader who was crushed by a dump truck in Al Hoceima, while attempting to oppose the seizure of his goods.

Zefzafi and his compatriots organized peaceful demonstrations to plead in favor of investment and economic development, “the Moroccan government having emptied the Rif of its resources”, wrote the NGO on its site.

Zefzafi’s commitment to non-violence and justice is as remarkable as his resilience. The American NGO recalled that in a 2018 letter to the European Parliament, Zefzafi recounted the abuses committed against his people: “The extermination of an entire tribe in 1898, the use of chemical weapons by Spanish forces during the the 1921-1926 war that left the Riffians riddled with cancer, the brutal response to a 1958 revolt, the 1984 bread uprising, violently suppressed by the authorities, the case of the five young men killed and burned by the authorities during the events of 2011”.

“Zefzafi remembers this bitter history to demand freedom and dignity – not revenge – for himself and his people. Despite this commitment to non-violence, Zefzafi and many other activists have been ruthlessly pursued, imprisoned and tortured since they were sentenced to prison”, noted the NGO.

From his cell, he documented the abuses perpetrated by Moroccan security forces against him and other activists. After posting a video in July 2017 detailing his treatment, protests erupted in several cities – inside and outside the Rif – calling for his release, the same source recalled.

Finally, the NGO warned of the deterioration of his health because, it is said, “his captors prevent him from receiving medical care. From his cell, he told us of his despair and loss of hope. Now he relies on others to keep the spirit of Hirak alive, not only so that his fellow Riffians can live dignified, just and free lives, but that he too can.”