International Forum of Young Socialist and Social Democratic Parliamentarians


Morocco in Perspective

Morocco is characterized by its geographical diversity, with mountainous and desert regions, and a dual coastline (on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west), situated at the crossroads of several civilizations. It also boasts great biological diversity, with numerous endemic species.

In 2023, it has a population of nearly 37 million inhabitants and a land area of 710,850 square kilometers. Morocco has traces of hominids dating back around 700,000 years and has been inhabited since prehistoric times.

Politically, the Moroccan state, as a distinct entity, was founded in 789 (over twelve centuries ago). Presently, Morocco is governed by a constitutional, democratic, parliamentary, and social monarchy. The Moroccan Constitution (last modified in 2011) defines Islam, Arabness, and Amazighness as the «fundamental characteristics» of the Moroccan people›s identity. This identity has been shaped through the convergence of its Mediterranean, Arab-Islamic, Amazigh, and European components, and has greatly benefited from its Andalusian, Hebrew, and, above all, African influences.

This national framework of reference goes hand in hand with the Moroccan people›s adherence to the values of openness, moderation, tolerance, and dialogue for mutual understanding among all cultures and civilizations of the world.

Economically, Morocco is the fifth-largest economy in Africa and the second-largest industrial power after South Africa. However, agriculture remains the country›s primary employer.

The Socialist Union for Popular Forces (USFP) is a left-wing Moroccan political party formed in 1959 from a split with the Istiqlal party under the name National Union for Popular Forces (UNFP).

The party adopted a social-democratic ideology and changed its name to Socialist Union for Popular Forces (USFP) on July 30, 1972. This represented a major turning point in the party’s history. It marked the abandonment of the «Revolutionary Option», the definitive renunciation of armed struggle and the adoption of the «Choice of Democratic Struggle». This choice was confirmed by membership of the Socialist International.

What practically determines the Party’s identity is a concrete commitment to the daily practice of the struggle for:

• Democratization of state and society. Democracy is the prerequisite for economic and social development, and the foundation on which the rule of law and social justice must be built.

• Consolidation of the values of intellectual and political modernity, foremost among which are the values of citizenship, respect for pluralism, diversity, and difference, without exclusion or discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, or religious beliefs.

• The unity and sovereignty of the homeland.

• The mobilization of all components of Moroccan society and its political and cultural elites against injustice and discrimination against women, and for an effective translation of the principle of parity and equality away from any traditional conservative interpretation of it.

• Social issues are central to the USFP’s political vision and is compatible with climate and sustainability issues, particularly in view of the threat to water availability, soil quality and the preservation of Morocco’s biodiversity.

In terms of participation in government:

• The USFP was the main opposition political force in Morocco for 4 decades (1959 to 1998). But it also participated in various governments (especially from 1998 onwards) and played a leading role in many of Morocco’s social and political reforms.

• In 1998, the USFP came first in the legislative elections, forming with a coalition of parties the first alternating government in the country’s history.

• In September 2002, following legislative elections in which the USFP won a majority, a technocrat Prime Minister was appointed. The party nevertheless participated in governments from 2002 to 2012.

• In 2012, the party chose to join the opposition, refusing the offer of participation in the coalition led by the conservative PJD party leader.

• In 2016, following a change of head of government, the USFP returned to the government coalition.

• Following the 2021 legislative elections, the Socialist Union of Popular Forces ranked fourth in terms of the number of seats and votes won. It is now the leading opposition force.

Presentation of the Forum

International situation

The last few years have been marked by numerous upheavals on an international scale, affecting all aspects: geopolitical, economic, social, and environmental. The security and socio-economic challenges that humanity faced during the last decade were exacerbated by the Covid19 pandemic, which not only constituted an unprecedented health crisis, but also forced States to review their geostrategic positioning on several levels and to act on their public policies at different levels.

The war in Ukraine

In addition to the effects of the pandemic, which continue to be felt, there is the war in Ukraine, the repercussions of which are felt in all regions of the world: increasingly galloping inflation, increasingly scarce resources, disturbances in production chains, and geopolitical repositioning that further complicates the international situation and favors exclusive and inequitable public policies.

Over exploitation of resources

In the face of the depletion of natural resources, the result of overexploitation by unaccountable industries and reckless consumption patterns, the objective of building fairer and more equitable societies, concerned with the preservation of wealth and guaranteeing equitable access to resources, but also concerned with the values of peace, security, democracy, and social justice, is threatened more than ever.

Public policies at the global level are now facing these challenges and are adopting different approaches in order to save their economies, sometimes to the detriment of social peace, by promoting authoritarianism and socio-economic inequalities and by resorting to the over-exploitation of resources, thus aggravating the degradation of our planet, whether it be water, soil, air or biodiversity.

Sustainable development

Although the States have agreed on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which constitute, in fact, a roadmap for all public policies aimed at improving living standards at the individual and societal levels and at preserving the planet, the fact remains that these goals are struggling to be translated into concrete actions, or at least, into strategic orientations at the level of government programs.

Sustainable development, decent work and economic growth, poverty eradication and reduction of inequalities, good health and well-being, inclusive education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, and green and affordable energy are all goals that require commitment, mobilization, allocation of resources, and a strong will on the part of the various actors for public policies aimed at building inclusive, just, and prosperous societies.

The need for engagement

To better understand these threats and to try to provide appropriate responses, it is essential to engage in an open and constructive debate to identify solutions and take actions.

To this end, the Moroccan Socialist Parliamentary Group is organizing the first edition of the Forum of Young Socialist and S&D Parliamentarians, which aims to be a space open to young socialist and S&D politicians from all over the world, and whose objective is to reflect together, within the framework of shared values and achievements, on solutions to ensure that public policies are more inclusive of all communities and capable of preserving the resources of our planet.

In fact, this space for exchange and debate will serve as a laboratory of renewal, a seedbed of ideas and proposals to be shared with the respective parliamentary groups and parties, and which will serve to propose measures and concerted actions.

This forum also aims to encourage young parliamentarians to consult and analyze these issues and propose innovative and effective solutions, demonstrating their skills to use new technologies and social networks to mobilize and sensitize other actors to important causes, including those related to social justice, the environment and gender equality. They can take the lead on these issues with new perspectives, new approaches and new tools, while developing international partnerships.

In addition, the Forum aims to enable young parliamentarians who are in their first term of office to gain international perspectives and to inspire their counterparts from all regions of the world. It also provides an opportunity for networking and cooperation on the various issues and themes of concern to socialists and social democrats around the world.

I .Peace and security in the world, new geopolitical challenges!

Throughout history, war has been one of the activities linked to man, power and conflict. On the other hand, peace has always been one of the aspirations of peoples and nations. And as much as people desire peace, they wage wars under different pretexts, and in different contexts and circles.

However, scientific and technological development - which forces us to reconsider the notions of time and distance, and which has erected war on a global and no longer on a local scale, and this since the First World War - has pushed Man to reconsider his first paradox, and has pushed him to look for new ways to avoid total war because it has become, quite simply, the equivalent of annihilation.

Indeed, the League of Nations, and later the United Nations, were created as structures that expressed an advanced stage of international organization in which the maintenance of peace was the main concern, if not the basis of their existence. But peace could only have been imagined in its relationship with security, given the dialectical relationship between the two. This is the mission of the United Nations Organization and before it the League of Nations, guarantors of international peace and security.

It is true that this organization has been able to keep pace with two completely different international systems in terms of structure or values, and has ensured a peaceful transition between them in a historical precedent, and has spared humanity the scourge of a global war. However, it has not been able to establish a lasting peace, because the absence of a total war does not prevent the spread of small wars, whether between states, or between non-state groups as a mode of «privatization» of war, contracts of violence have flourished with it, and states have virtually disappeared as traditional parties to wars in favor of these new actors.

As the third decade of the twenty-first century began, and with the epidemic crisis, it seemed that the international system was facing new revisions of the concepts it had preached in previous decades, such as the concept of the world-village, replaced by increasingly chauvinistic sovereign states closing in on themselves and isolating their capabilities according to a logic of mutual aid that no longer recognizes the world citizen, but rather the national citizen. Nationality, borders and sovereignty have regained some of the luster they had lost for decades

With the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the postulate that the interdependence achieved by societies through the economic gateway is a major guarantee of peace was shaken.

Military/bullish force returned to impose itself on the policy makers as the most important element of state power. It seemed that the concepts of realism were returning in force to spread their wings over international relations, through the rise of special interests at the expense of common interests, and the return of the language of alliances as an actor in the formation of international relations. It is as if the winds of international polarization of the forties of the last century were echoing the developments of the situation in a world that is accelerating the pace of digitalization.

At the same time, cross-border crises are emerging. These are difficult for a single state to deal with, no matter how strong its skills and resources. We can cite the energy and food crises, the environment declaring its anger at the overexploitation of resources by human activity (global warming, drought, desertification, and pollution...) which augurs a difficult future.

Consequently, we would like to address the following questions:

• How can we consider the threats to security that the world is facing today?

• How do we address violence, given that peace, in its simple definition, refers to the absence of organized violence?

• To what extent are the structures responsible for maintaining international peace and security able to fulfill their mission?

• Are the paradigms that governed the world of sensible things still capable of developing answers for the world of algorithms?

• What are the roles of parliaments in promoting the transition to a more secure world?

• How can socialist and social democratic parties develop new visions for a safer world?

I I .Disparities, poverty, and resource management: Towards more equitable social protection

Social disparities lead to discrimination, marginalization, unemployment, and unfair access to basic social services. These injustices have become a serious threat to social and political stability in countries around the world. This is one of the major priority issues that have aroused and continue to arouse the interest of economists and decision-makers in both developed and developing countries.

It is a well-established fact that access to equitable social protection helps to combat poverty and reduce disparities, while ensuring sound management of financial, material, and human resources.

The ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization stressed that all ILO member states have a primary responsibility to contribute to the achievement of decent work goals. This includes achieving the goal of social protection by extending the scope of social security to all, taking measures to provide a basic income to all those in need of such protection, and adapting its scope and coverage to meet new needs and uncertainties generated by technological, societal, demographic, and economic developments.

 

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26-05-2023 / 18-07-2023

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