Performance of Human Rights in Morocco

• • Title: The Performance of Human Rights in Morocco

  • Author: Susan Slyomovics

  • Introduction to Human Rights in Morocco

• Public Space in Morocco: Opening up for dialogue about human rights; venues for congregating, protesting, and exchanging ideas.

• Historical Context: Previous taboo topics such as torture and imprisonment are becoming subjects of public testimony and artistic expression.

• Personal Testimonies: The voice of political prisoners is highlighted through letters and other forms of writing, increasing awareness about human rights abuses.

• Letters as a Medium: Letters serve as significant tools for communication between prisoners and the outside world, fostering support and awareness.

The Years of Lead (al-raṣāṣ) and Black Years (al-sanawāt al-sawdā')

• Terms used to describe Morocco's repressive political climate after independence.

• Thousands of dissenters—including nationalists, leftists, feminists—faced repression and imprisonment.

• Use of political trials, torture, and forced disappearances characterized this era.

Artistic and Literary Responses to Repression

• Types of Expressive Forms: Articles, poetry, graffiti respond to political oppression and make visible the human rights violations.

• Impact of Prison Literature: Literature from prisoners unveils individual and collective struggles, contributing to historical narratives.

• Engaged Writing: Defined by activist poets and writers, serving both personal and political purposes.

Human Rights Activism in Morocco

• Role of Survivors and Activists: Acknowledgment of survivors striving to reconstruct the historical narrative of repression.

• Activism and Writing: Significant role of writers in documenting human rights abuses and promoting political awareness.

• Challenges in Documentation: The difficulty in articulating the experiences of torture in conventional, written forms—often best expressed through poetry.

Definition of Performance in Human Rights Activism

• Performance as Social Expression: Everyday life activities can be viewed as acts of human rights performance, tying personal experiences to wider social movements.

• Halqa: A traditional Moroccan performance space where audiences participate, exemplifying community in human rights advocacy.

Case Study: Political Prisoners and Women's Testimonies

• Gendered Experiences of Torture: The narratives of women political prisoners reveal dual oppressions—both political and gender-based.

• El Bouih’s Testimony: Through her writings, her experiences speak to the broader plight of incarcerated women, depicting both struggle and resilience.

• Communicative Actions of Prisoners: Innovative communication methods used by female prisoners to connect and support each other in oppressive conditions.

Conclusion: From Silence to Voice

• Legacy of Statements: The legacy of political prisoners through their artistic expression remains critical in shaping the discourse around human rights in Morocco.

• Collective memory: The ongoing fight against forgetting the past, as survivors and families of victims continue to assert their rights and seek justice for human rights violations.

El Bouih characterizes her work as pure shahädah (in French, she uses the

word témoignage)." In Morocco since the 1970s, the Arabic word shahadah

has come to express what is defined as testimonio in Latin American litera-

ture:

The word testimonio translates literally as testimony, as in the act of testifying

or bearing witness in a legal and religious sense.