[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 14]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 19899-19900]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANT TESTIMONY OF MR. CHARLES DAHAN BEFORE THE 
                   CONGRESSIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS CAUCUS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 19, 2007

  Mr. LANTOS. Madam Speaker, on Wednesday, June 20, 2007, the 
Congressional Human Rights Caucus held an extraordinary briefing on 
Morocco's progress toward gender equality.
  The briefing addressed the very important issue of women's rights in 
Morocco that has been the number one priority of King Mohammed VI. The 
Moudawana (the Family Law), adopted in 2003, has sought to raise 
women's status as full partners with men, in order to uphold equality 
between the two spouses and to protect children's rights. Women are now 
able to initiate divorce and to gain custody of their children. 
Polygamy has become practically impossible.
  Madam Speaker, Mr. Charles Dahan, the World Vice President of the 
Federation of the Moroccan Jewry, shared his exceptional knowledge of 
women's rights in Morocco. Mr. Dahan's speech was not only eloquent but 
tremendously important in educating the Members and their staff on this 
issue.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in thanking Mr. Dahan for sharing with 
so many prominent leaders his expertise. With that I would like to 
place Mr. Dahan's testimony in the Congressional Record.

                   Morocco, Progress Toward Equality

                           (By Charles Dahan)

       Thank you for inviting me to visit with you about Jews in 
     Morocco today. Let me start with a brief overview of how the 
     Jews came to settle in Morocco.
       Two major groups of migration:
       1. 3-400 BC Destruction of the Temple. Jews crossed Egypt 
     and settled in the Berber region of what is now Libya and 
     Morocco. These Jews are referred to in Hebrew as 
     ``Tochavim''. At this time, the Berbers had no organized 
     religion and the Jews lived their Jewish life coexisting with 
     the tribes and, on occasion, conversions would occur. In the 
     1300s, Islam was introduced in Morocco and most Berbers 
     converted to Islam.
       2. 1490s Spanish Inquisition. Both Muslims and Jews were 
     forced out of Spain and settled in Northern Africa. This was 
     a shared historical experience. These Jews are called 
     ``Megorachim'' in Hebrew and they numbered between 25-30,000.
       There were several important moments where the Jewish 
     contribution to Moroccan life was recognized and, therefore, 
     protected by the Sultans. Two examples are:
       We see the creation of ``Mellahs'' during the 1600s. Jews 
     were considered ``dhimmis'' (literally, protected persons) at 
     this time by the Sultan. Original purpose of mellahs was to 
     protect Jewish communities. Mellahs developed center of 
     services for royal authority like duties, minting coins, 
     diplomacy, and royal merchants.
       In the 1800s, Sir Moses Montefiore met with Sultan Ridi 
     Muhammad b. `Abd al-Rahman who issued royal decree 
     proclaiming Jews in Morocco were protected by justice under 
     Moroccan law.
       A very important development in 1862 is the creation of 
     first school of the Alliance Israelite in Tetouan. The result 
     of this school significantly increased the education level of 
     Jews as the network spread across Morocco. This focus on 
     education of the existing 200-250,000 Moroccan Jews is a 
     major force in their historical value as a community. For 
     example, in 1991 King Hassan II said to Moroccan Jews in a 
     speech ``You preceded the Arabs in Morocco, and you still 
     stand out by a quality which distinguishes you in the 
     cultural and religious fields. The Moroccan Talmudic School 
     was universally recognized as the best in the world.''
       Feast of the throne, 1943: ``I consider the Jews as 
     Moroccan citizens with the same full and equal rights, as 
     their Moslem brothers. Their property and their persons are 
     inviolable. I am completely opposed to the new anti-semitic 
     laws, and refuse to be associated with measures which I 
     disapprove. I wish to inform you that, as in the past, the 
     Jews remain under my protection, and I will not tolerate any 
     discrimination between my subjects.''
       Moroccan independence from France greatly altered the 
     Moroccan Jewish life. Anxiety over the future mounted among 
     Jews. In 1955, a year before Moroccan independence, North 
     African Jews represented 87% of new immigrants in Israel.
       Even though the newly independent King Mohammad V declared 
     in 1956 ``The Jews will enjoy every right, in complete 
     equality, and be associated in every form of our national 
     life, including responsibilities within the government'', 
     life dramatically changed for the Jews in Morocco. Several 
     social, political and economic factors were conditions for a 
     perfect storm:
       Decolonization led to an economic vacuum by the French. A 
     whole level of life had been economically dependent on the 
     French and the balance of this life shifted dramatically 
     adding anxiety to the Jewish population.
       Arabization was one of the main objectives of the 
     Nationalists. Remember that French had been the language of 
     education, much culture, daily life and commerce for this 
     generation. The Jewish elite, living outside of the Mellah, 
     did not speak Arabic and this lack of communication led to 
     more confusion and anxiety.
       Hardening of the National Political Party was new to the 
     Jews. Encouragement from Nasser and the Arab League led to 
     many demonstrations against the French colonists. In 
     addition, the Party was leaning to the Left with communist 
     ideas and forging relations with Moscow. It was too dangerous 
     to attack French Christian citizens so the Moroccan Jews 
     became the invented symbol of colonization. Any kind of 
     demonstration or riot ended up targeting Moroccan Jews.
       After the Independence, King Mohammad V restricted 
     emigration. The Jews were torn between the consequences and 
     uncertainty of their future in Morocco and the illegal 
     departure for a totally unknown life. Some

[[Page 19900]]

     chose to escape and one historical consequence was 1961 ship 
     called the Pisces that sank killing all 43 Jews who had been 
     smuggled aboard. This was an important event that politicized 
     the Moroccan Jews. In 1962, upon the ascension of King Hassan 
     II, Jews were allowed to emigrate. King Hassan told the 
     community: ``. . . I have recognized your rights as full-
     fledged Moroccan citizens. I request that you will be the 
     ambassadors of Morocco wherever you may choose to emigrate 
     and that you defend the reputation of your country whenever 
     it is maligned by the media through bad faith or ignorance''.
       That was the first major Jewish exodus from Morocco. Two-
     thirds of that population left Morocco for Israel and Canada. 
     The second exodus was in 1967 during the Six-Day War and the 
     third was in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War.
       This brings us to life today as a Moroccan Jew, both inside 
     and outside the country. King Mohammad VI is a young and 
     modern monarch who faces worldwide pressure. His legacy to 
     follow is that of a peacemaker, often behind the scenes. His 
     vision is to bring Morocco to a western level of development.
       Although the population of Jews within Morocco has dwindled 
     to approximately 3,000, there remains a vibrant community 
     involved in many levels of society.
       Although many of the Moroccan Jews have left, we still 
     retain our unique blending of Judaism and Moroccan culture. 
     This infusion is apparent in:
       Religion: only Moroccan Jews pay homage to sainted Rabbis 
     buried on Moroccan soil. These pilgrimages, ``hiloulahs,'' 
     involve a return to Morocco and a visit to the buried site 
     which is tended and respected as well by Moroccan Muslims.
       Weddings in Israel and Moroccan Jews worldwide are preceded 
     by Hennas--typical of the Berber/Muslim religion. Also 
     carrying of brides on ``litters''.
       In conclusion, there is more to bring Moroccans together 
     than to separate them. The single biggest threat to unity is 
     extremism.
       The United States needs to support Morocco in the strongest 
     way to encourage their development as through the recent 
     Trade Agreement and to help them fight the threat of 
     terrorism. Through investment and development, there are 
     promises to be a bright future.
       As for Moroccan Jews who have emigrated, I think the words 
     of Yitzhak Shamir sum it up: ``Moroccan Jews were the only 
     Jews that never renounced their country, nor were they 
     rejected by their country''.

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