The Forbidden Dream

“I would rather be ruled by people who think they will fry in Hell forever, if they rule me poorly; than by people for whom I am merely a convenient economic cipher, who can be milked like a cow”

Charles Coulombe

We were born to dream, we were born to work on our dreams, and we were born to achieve our dreams. This is a factual thing associated with every human being since ever God created us, and it is a legitimate right for every person on the face of the earth. However, logic states that we should be more realistic in our dreams, meaning that we ought to dream according to our means and capabilities to make all we have dreamed of, a reality.

While I was browsing a Facebook page recently, I noticed that there is an actual group of young Moroccans who have decided to bring their dream to the social media. These young men actually adopted a dream that is much bigger than they can fulfill. Of course they have the total right to adopt any dream, as long as it is a personal dream which will not have an impact or effect on others, in any way or shape, otherwise their dream might be considered a violation of others’ rights.

These young men are campaigning for realizing a dream of founding the “Republic of Morocco”! Some might say that it is their right to dream of whatever they fancy, yet only few can realize that such a dream can have fatal consequences on our upcoming generations, and even on the current one, which lacks a deep understanding of the true Moroccan heritage, and what Monarchy represents to Moroccans’ lives. It is more than just a political system; it is the outcome of thousands of years of a strong bond between ruling dynasties in Morocco and people, even before Arabs came to the country and introduced Islam as a new ruling Holy Doctrine to be adopted by the land.

I strongly believe that these young men have no clue about the history of their country; they have a little or no knowledge at all about the socio-structure of Morocco. They seem to ignore that the only institution that can actually guarantee security and stability to Moroccans is Monarchy, for a very simple reason: The King in Morocco does not represent any particular tribe or ethnic group, he rather represents the country as a whole, and it has always been the case throughout ancient and modern Moroccan history. However, whose fault is it that these young men ignore their own history, their own country, their own heritage?

There is no doubt that the poor educational system in Morocco is a major player in this catastrophe, and thinking otherwise is, basically, living in denial. A quick glance at history books in Morocco will make all of us feel pity for how this young generation is extracted from its past, and an immediate reforms are to take place, or we will have to deal with major issues, beyond what these young ignorant kids are dreaming of.

This, by no means, an eternal hymn for the King or Monarchy in Morocco; it is rather a realistic approach to a very serious social and political issue. I am not here to praise the King, but to shed some light on how our youth has become, try to pinpoint the real problem, address it, hoping that we can all contribute to find a solution to it. Those who demand the “Republic” are clearly lacking the simplest understanding of political systems. They seem to ignore that the political system of the Kingdom of Morocco is based on the principles of the “Republic” or what is vastly known in Political Science as the “Presidential System”. I will discuss this in other analyses, as it is important that we should understand our own political structure before we can jump to either criticism or conclusions.

If these young men think and believe that ditching Monarchy will ensure the true practice of “democracy’ in Morocco, then they must be living in a world of their own. They should have learned that in Morocco, there is always favoritism at every level. We all remember how some officials used to favor their regions, once in power, and ignoring the rest of the country. Now, can we imagine if there were a “President”; what would happen?

It is true that all dynasties that ruled Morocco have always implemented a golden rule in their reign; they all preferred to be feared than loved, and it was always hard to combine between the two. Is it because they understood perfectly how Moroccans think and would react? Maybe! However, I must admit that we are not an easygoing people and it is always hard to please us, therefore a reign by an iron fist can be inevitable at times.

It is true that Morocco experienced difficult times pre-1999 and many liberties were tightened or almost not existing, but the country is heading towards the right direction, and cutting all ties with the past is a process that will take time to accomplish. We cannot erase decades of totalitarian rule in a matter of years. Patience is required, collective collaboration is necessary. We should not rely on one particular institution to do the job for us. It is every single person’s duty to improve at a personal level before engaging in the ultimate national duty of founding the perfect ground for democratic practice, and not only that, but to maintain and sustain the rule of law and equality within the layers of the society, far from any personal or egoistic interests.

What it seems to me that these young ignorant men are rising from one ambition, seeking to secure themselves, only to attack others once they achieve their goals. Of course, they have their “legitimate” reason to adopt such a dream, but they have to be more realistic in their approach and realize that the problem of Morocco does not lie only within the walls of the Royal Palace, but there are cocktails of problems that need to be looked at, before throwing blames on any institution. I admit that there are flaws in the general policies implemented in the country, but aren’t we part of the problem?  We are indeed, and anyone disagrees with this statement, needs to have a serious look at thyself before jumping on the bandwagon.

The future looks bright for the Kingdom of Morocco. Moroccans have a young king and one who actually cares about the wellbeing of a nation. He needs every person to be by his side and tackle all types of corruption in the country. It is easy to criticize sometimes, but it is difficult to assume the responsibility that we are in the heart of any political or social problem. And as per these “daydreamers”, I hope they will realize that they live in a galaxy of their own, they are not rational or realistic in their approach to Moroccan politics. They should consider joining forces with their compatriots rather than showing an excessive anger and hatred. Morocco is our country, their country, so why not consider collaborating instead of creating a negative front that will have nothing-good coming out of it rather than just more divisions within the layers of the society.

I will conclude by this beautiful quote from Machiavelli: “Hatred is gained as much by good works as by evil”.

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Mr. Beni-ich holds a BA in Law, a BA in Political Sciences, a MA in Security and Intelligence Analyses, a MA in Global Terrorism and a PhD in International Politics. His studies were pursued in England and the U.S.