“Regarding the Sahara affair, we defend a negotiated solution which excludes the Moroccan proposal for autonomy” : in the great fresco of routed characters, Aziz Ghali imposed himself through a singular obstinacy to undermine national unity while claiming a role of “human rights defender.” At the head of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH), he now embodies a caricature of an ideological shipwreck. Whether it is the Sahara question or his risky outings on international subjects, he excels in the art of turning his back on history, international law and, above all, common sense. However, one only needs to take a look at Europe, where modern nations rely on a sacred consensus around their territorial integrity, to measure the inanity of its positions.
Can we imagine a French citizen actively campaigning against his country’s sovereignty over Alsace-Lorraine? No, because even the most critical figures of French institutions recognize that certain principles are non-negotiable. Why then does Aziz Ghali persist in playing the troublemaker, if not to flatter external agendas and garner ephemeral notoriety in circles where the word “sovereignty” seems to be anathema?
The decline of the AMDH under his leadership
Once a benchmark for human rights in Morocco, the AMDH is today a sinking ship. Under the leadership of Aziz Ghali, the association has transformed into a politicized forum where the real concerns of citizens – social justice, equal opportunities, fundamental freedoms – are relegated to the background, eclipsed by a monomaniacal obsession with divisive narratives. . The defense of the vulnerable is nothing more than a distant memory, replaced by momentary controversies which have no other effect than to divide public opinion.
Even grassroots activists, Barlamane.com learned, find themselves disillusioned with a leadership that seems more concerned with its own international posture. This growing gap between popular aspirations and the speeches of the AMDH is the perfect illustration of Aziz Ghali’s disconnection with the concerns of his country, which reaps diplomatic and political victories thanks to the vision of the Cherifian sovereign and a line that nothing upsets.
Above-ground activist syndrome
Aziz Ghali seems to have lost all anchoring in the national cultural and historical soil. For him, Morocco is only an abstract concept, a geographical map to be debated in conferences where national interests are casually trampled on, a subject of discussion without much scope. Irony of fate: Aziz Ghali seems to forget that his own right to express himself – and to speak about the territorial integrity of his own country – are guaranteed by a democratic structure that he denigrates at every opportunity. In a dictatorship or under foreign occupation, his lyrical flights would quickly come up against much less tolerant walls. The Algerian example, in this case, is eloquent.
On the other hand, by contesting Moroccan sovereignty over the territory of the Sahara, it is only unwittingly serving hostile external forces who have no scruples about exploiting or fueling internal divisions. His positions, under the guise of defending human rights, become weapons for those who have nothing but contempt for these same rights.
The strange fascination with contested territories
Let’s take a moment to think about the logic behind Aziz Ghali’s statements. Why is he focusing so much energy on the Sahara, while ignoring other territorial conflicts in the world? Why does he not rebel, for example, against the presence of the United Kingdom in Gibraltar or the annexation of Crimea by Russia? The answer is simple: its agenda is calibrated to target Morocco exclusively. In reality, his arguments do not stand up to analysis. If Moroccan sovereignty over the Sahara were to be called into question, then the issue of Alsace-Lorraine, the Basque Country, or even the island of Mayotte would also have to be reopened. However, no serious activist in Europe would risk such an enterprise, as the consequences would be catastrophic.
The legacy of a decline
When Aziz Ghali ends up leaving the public scene – because every career, even the most controversial, has an end – what will remain of his time at the head of the AMDH? Probably a weakened organization, disowned by its historical supporters and isolated in an associative landscape where it once played a preponderant role. He will have achieved the feat of transforming a powerful advocacy tool into a sounding board for imported ideas, in total break with Moroccan realities. His successors will have to work tirelessly to restore the credibility of the AMDH, a mission that promises to be titanic. Aziz Ghali experiences the excesses of disconnected activism. By contesting Morocco’s territorial integrity, he is not only betraying the history and aspirations of his own fellow citizens; he also betrays the fundamental mission of the organization he represents, which has become a box that sucks up international subsidies.
