Territorial Stress in Morocco: From Democratic to Autonomist Demands in Popular Protests in the Rif

Abstract

This article analyses the evolution of popular protest in the Rif within the Moroccan context of contention. It considers the specificity of the demands expressed and the strategies for mobilization adopted as a result of a long-term process of regional activism. The article finds that protesters in the Rif have had agency to conduct their own strategies, using the opportunity structure opened at state level to advance their own agenda. The preexisting mobilizing structures and the reproduction of patterns of centre -periphery tension in the course of the contention have fostered a progressive localization of protest in the region, which has strengthened regional identity and regionalist activism in the Rif.

Plus ça Change? Observing the Dynamics of Morocco's ‘Arab Spring’ in the High Atlas

“…The protests assumed different characteristics in the urban centres compared to the rural peripheries, not least due to the limits posed by the opportunity structure of the High Atlas region. In contrast to other areas in Morocco such as the Rif and the Western Sahara, this region's opportunity structure did not include already existing well-organized and politicized structures of mobilization and opposition (see Suárez Collado, 2015;Fernández Molina, 2015; for the case of Syria, see Leenders & Heydemann, 2012).…”

“…It seems that in the High Atlas, and to a much greater extent in the Rif (see Suárez Collado, 2015) local identities that emerged during earlier and more recent protests became a cohesive factor that allowed for greater political participation and in some cases enabled local associations to formulate clear political-territorial demands.…”

“…Indeed, some Amazigh associations have in recent years been building important networks linking local to international levels in order to address their requests to the central government (see Oiry-Varacca, 2012;Suárez Collado, 2015). In Tighedouine, there are two associations representing Amazigh interests: Yagour and Tamaynoute.…”

“…In rural areas, the F20M has inspired a few protests, but mobilizations there started in the early 2000s and have continued afterwards as in the examples mentioned earlier, mainly to address urgent socio-economic needs. The number of localized rural/peripheral protests has increased over the last decade (see Bennafla & Emperador, 2010;Bogaert, 2015;Hadj-Moussa, 2013;Lahbib, 2011: 18;Planel, 2011;Suárez Collado, 2015), despite the fact that important national development programmes in the areas of rural roads, electrification and drinking water were implemented by the mid-2000s. In urban areas, the F20M has certainly left its mark.…”

La gestión de la crisis humanitaria y la movilización social: Ascenso y declive de la nueva elite rifeña en longue durée

“…El trabajo comienza adentrándose en el origen del ascenso de la élite activista rifeña en la nueva estructura de poder, particularmente en los momentos previos al terremoto de 2004, y acaba analizando cómo se gesta un declive gradual que resulta en la fragmentación acaecida tras el estallido de las protestas sociales en el Rif durante el Hirak de 2016-2017. Este trabajo interactúa y complementa las investigaciones de Angela Suárez- Collado (2008Collado ( , 2011Collado ( , 2013Collado ( , 2015Collado ( , 2017 sobre el Rif, en los que aborda temas como la crisis humanitaria, la monarquía, la identidad amazigh, la élite rifeña, los movimientos populares y las protestas.…”