May 20, 2003	Tuesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 17, 1424

THE FIRST time, the reality of terrorism is palpable. Photographs in the local press have excited fear and indignation. Moroccans will never look at TV images of victims of terrorism in other countries in the same way. The bombers, notably, were all Moroccan. That came as a real slap in the face. It is our society that is responsible, at least in part, for creating this atrocity. Even if the radicals are undoubtedly at the margins of society, they are symptomatic.

Moroccan society is undergoing subtle changes. Today, the question of how profoundly we need to reform is still open. Elections last September failed to resolve the major problem: the lack of clear divisions of power, in the absence of a constitution, and, its corollary, the absolute character of the monarchy. In the past, these were portrayed by the regime as guarantees of stability. Today, it must be admitted their secondary effects are a prime cause of instability. The absence of checks and balances has given rise to aggressive, predatory behaviour in the economic sphere, which in turn results in social injustice.

Our society is a living example of pluralism and dynamism. Associations for women’s rights and human rights have done extraordinary work. Their actions have brought about the start of a genuine dialogue. As a result, (our) society is for the most part anti-extremist. But unfortunately, these views are not conveyed to the majority of citizens thanks to the restrictions on freedom of expression in the state-controlled media.

If September 11 forced the western world to find a new balance between security and freedom, imagine the complexity of that same dilemma in a country such as Morocco. There is, however, only one route: democratisation as the product of social equity.—Dawn/The Guardian News Service.

Aboubakr Jamai is editor of the weekly Moroccan newspaper, Le Journal.