The sun is rising in the Maghrib

Morocco does not necessarily have a good reputation in modern-day Europe. Since the 1960's Morocco has been an important supplier of immigrants to countries like France, Belgium, and Holland. As a consequence the country is now no longer so much associated with arabesque handicrafts and Matisse paintings of odalisques, as it is with discussions about headscarves and other symbols of what many consider lacking adaptation to the modern world.

This does not mean that Morocco is immune to change. The Dutch romancier Kees Beekman has been living in Morocco for a few years now, and reports in this book about what he considers the unstoppable modernisation of Moroccan society.

What appears from Mr. Beekman's description is a country that does not embrace modernisation as enthusiastically as, say, the tigers in Asia. Angst seems to define this shame culture, with change assessed by how it impacts the honour of individual people and the nation.

The emancipation of women is an excellent example here. Traditionally the husband is head of the family, and anything that improves the position of women is seen in the terms of a zero sum game: an improvement for women deteriorates the position of men and destabilises families. However, although men prefer religious women as candidates for marriage, this does not stop individualisation or the emancipation of women.

The author and the social scientists he consults seem to see things more as part of a long term process. They quote Max Weber several times: modernity is the product of religious ethics. They see the stricter interpretation of Islam among people who went to the cities in terms of the passage à l’écrit. This is the first generation that can read and write, and these former illiterates first consult the sources of their traditional culture before they grab a book by Flaubert. And as a consequence of their emancipation they demand respect for their religious feelings.

At the same time the school and banking system, the arts and other parts of society are escaping from the grip of religion, and the fertility rate and the power of patriarchy are losing steam. This is happening in a society were the average middle class family has about € 500 to spend in a month, which gives limited room for maneuvering.

Although Moroccans see themselves as Muslims first and then as Moroccans, a majority wants a segregation between politics and religion. Still, the The king is first of all commandeur des croyants, and then the head of state, and consequently the state is foremost defined in religious terms. The young king Mohammed VI's inauguration was a time of hope for Morocco's democrats, but it did not last long. His father controlled politics more and the elite less, but the current king controls the elite. All important ministers are directly appointed by him, and consequently democracy is a farce. With less than 30% of the electorate voting, Moroccan elections are more an opinion poll about the support for Islamists. Having a hand in most publicly traded companies, the king has every interest in maintaining the status quo and keeping the Islamists at bay.

Mr. Beekman bases his assessment mainly upon articles in Morocco's French language press and his conversations with the French speaking Moroccan intellectuals he encounters in Rabat and Casablanca, two modern cities that seem light years away from the crumbling medinas of Fez and Meknes or the villages in the Rif Mountains.

This may also be the book's main weakness. His informers seem better versed in the works of dead German sociologists than in the Hadith or the Fiq, and more interested in democratisation than in economic development. Still, I thought the book was better than the lousy title suggested. ( )