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The Quiet Revolution

Morocco's King Aims To Build a Modern Islamic Democracy

By Helene Zuber

Moroccan King Mohammed VI is using a tolerant interpretation of the Koran in an attempt to modernize his country. Will it become a model state for a democratic version of Islam?

In the late afternoon, Moroccans push their way into the narrow foyer at the Casa Port train station. When the express train to Rabat arrives, the gates are finally opened and the crowd surges forward to the railcars.

The two first class compartments fill up especially quickly at this hour. Many commuters work in the glass and steel high-rises of modern business center Casablanca and live an hour away by train in the quieter capital city Rabat, or in one of the rapidly growing communities along the route. Just before the whistle blows and the express train begins moving again, a tall man in his early thirties settles into one of the plush red seats. Judging by his expensive suit and tie, he probably works in the city. He pulls an inconspicuous black case from his briefcase, unzips it and, murmuring to himself, quickly becomes engrossed in his pocket Koran.

A girl wearing jeans, makeup and headphones over her uncovered hair sits across from the man in the suit. But instead of rock or rap, she's listening to delicate oriental tunes and melodious recitations of the holy scriptures.

Religion is making a comeback in Morocco, and more and more young, well-educated Moroccans are devouring the Koran. The new piety, no longer limited to the mosque or prayers at home, is evident in full public view. More and more women are wearing headscarves, even in Casablanca's western fashion enclaves and Rabat's gleaming shopping centers. The designers of expensive caftans -- creations of brocade and silk, embellished with gold thread -- are now selling their products as luxury couture for the next party, and their clientele is no longer limited to wealthy tourists.

A New Take on an Old Religion

Morocco's 42-year-old King Mohammed VI has discovered religion as a means of modernizing his society -- and progress through piety seems to be the order of the day. By granting new rights to women and strengthening civil liberties, the ruler of this country of 30 million on Africa's northern edge, which is 99 percent Muslim, plans to democratize Morocco through a tolerant interpretation of the Koran.

Morocco's 350-year-old dynasty, the world's oldest next to the Japanese imperial dynasty, claims to be directly descended from the prophet Mohammed. And as "Amir al-Muminin," or leader of the faithful, the country's ruler enjoys absolute authority.

The Conseil Supérieur des Oulémas, or council of religious scholars, which the king installed a year and a half ago, has been issuing fatwas on the most pressing questions of the 21st century -- and, surprisingly, they've been well-received by both young people and hardened Islamists. If the king's reform plan succeeds, Morocco could become a model of democratic Islam.

Five decades after his country declared its independence from its French and Spanish colonial rulers and six years after the death of his father, Hassan II, Mohammed VI is trying to achieve a delicate balance between thousands of years of Islamic tradition and the demands of a globalized world.

Eight weeks ago Mohammed VI, as Morocco's "citizen king" and "first servant," addressed his "dear people" during festivities to celebrate the anniversary of his grandfather's return from exile. "The path we have irrevocably chosen," said Mohammed, "is to strengthen civil rights for the benefit of all Moroccans - whom I view as equals, regardless of their status." The foreign dignitaries in attendance, French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, praised the course that the government of Prime Minister Driss Jetou has taken under the king's leadership.

Feminism Islam-style

Soumia Benkhaldoun, 42, is also enthusiastic about her king. An engineer with a doctorate in computer systems, Benkhaldoun is one of the six women representing the Islamist "Justice and Development Party" at the country's opulent parliament building in Rabat. Although her party's true objective is to preserve a devout and god-fearing lifestyle in Morocco, the Islamists are also very pleased with the reforms of family law that began in the fall of 2003.

The public debate in Morocco currently revolves around ways to reconcile the demands of feminists with the Islamists' concept of family. Should women be permitted to go to the beach in a bikini? Should they be able to hold high-ranking public office? Do illegitimate children receive the mother's citizenship? The answers to these and other questions, in Morocco and in other Arab countries, will likely reveal whether the Islamic world is even capable of reform.

"The king has taken our concerns into account," says Professor Benkhaldoun, and a proud smile darts across her girlish face under her white headscarf. Indeed, Mohammed VI has managed to incorporate Morocco's only Islamist party into his reform agenda. The progressive king and the pious member of parliament from Kenitra, a woman so devout that she even fasts once a week when it isn't Ramadan, both base their reasoning on the same source: Sharia, or Islamic law.

The Islamist party has also taken up the cause of this form of family law derived from the scriptures of Islam. Whether it's the issue of polygamy (which, though not prohibited, has become the exception), arranged marriage (which is no longer mandatory, but still possible), or divorce based on the principle of fault (now women are also eligible to file for divorce) -- the devout parliamentarian believes that the core issue is "the stability of the family." Only well-established family structures, says Benkhaldoun, can protect a society facing high unemployment and widespread poverty from collapse.

"Morocco's future lies in the hands of women"

Despite the popularity of the new family law, the monarch had to step in himself after the parliament failed to ratify the new legislation. Mohammed told the members of both houses of parliament, to whom -- in another unprecedented move -- he presented the law for ratification. The new version of the "Mudawwana" was then unanimously approved. The law is an historic compromise, one that is compatible with both the International Bill of Human Rights and Sharia.

Now all Moroccan women, even those who are illiterate, know that they are protected by law, says civil rights professor Fatna Sarehane, who is working on a study about the implementation of the new law. Although many jurisdictions still lack family courts, says the Casablanca attorney, the new legislation is an enormous step forward. For the first time in the country's history, discrimination against women is as punishable an offence as sexual harassment. Even if the Islamists come into power one day, says Sarehane, it's a step that can "no longer be reversed."

Women are particularly strong in Islamist grassroots organizations and the Justice and Development Party. Academic Benkhaldoun, who always wears a strictly conservative, floor-length robe when not at home, has fought for women's rights in the Islamic world for the past 20 years. In her lectures, she attempts to prove that, according to the Koran, women are entitled to participate in government. Political involvement seems to run in the family: Benkhaldoun's mother, as a member of the Istiklal Party, fought for Moroccan independence.

Until recently, Benkhaldoun headed the parliament's Defense and Foreign Policy Committee. She takes her job seriously, preparing conscientiously for debates. She often doesn't come home to her husband and children until after evening prayers, for which parliamentary sessions are interrupted.