More than 20 arrests after the march of thirst in Zagora, Morocco
Rebounded by the shortage of drinking water, the inhabitants of Zagora went out to demonstrate last Sunday. The demonstration, which followed a call on the social networks, degenerated into clashes when individuals set fire to rubbish bins and blocked access to some streets to the police.
The police arrested twenty-one people, sixteen of whom are currently in police custody, reports Al Massae. Seven persons were brought before the judge of the Zagora District Court.
Concerning the human damage, four policemen were wounded by stone throws and a woman was transported to the regional hospital of the city.
They are called the "manifestations of thirst": in the south, inhabitants regularly protest against recurring water cuts. In Rabat, the issue was raised as a matter of priority and the king himself was worried about the "water security" of the country.
"Living without water is a hell!", Said Atmane Rizkou, president of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH) in Zagora, the main city of southern Morocco struck by this "water crisis". "The situation is critical, it is a daily suffering for the inhabitants", also indignant Jamal Akchbabe, president of the Association of friends of the environment of Zagora, joins by telephone.
Located at the gates of the desert, Zagora, a locality with more than 30,000 inhabitants, is located almost 700 km from Rabat, beyond the massifs of the Atlas. Since the beginning of the summer, "families stay several days without tap water, others only have a few hours a day," says Akchbabe. "This water is more undrinkable, so people buy drinking water sold in drums," he adds.
'Repression, insults, humiliation'
To make themselves heard, the inhabitants of Zagora have organized several peaceful demonstrations in the last few months, initially tolerated by the authorities. But on 24 September, law enforcement officials intervened to disperse a march and arrested seven people, prosecuted for "participating in an unauthorized demonstration", said the local head of the AMDH.
On 8 October, during a new march, the police "gauged the city and used force", calling on 21 people, charged with the same charges, while "clashes have opposed young protestors to the police" , according to Jamal Akchbabe. "The demonstrators have suffered repression, insults and humiliation. The city is in a state of siege," he criticized.
At the origin of this shortage, a rainfall deficit combined with the overexploitation of groundwater by agriculture, mainly "the cultivation of watermelon that consumes a lot of water," says Akchbabe.
The protesters accuse the Ministry of Agriculture of having encouraged this culture which "benefits the great farmers at the expense of the inhabitants". The National Drinking Water Authority (Onep) is also criticized for its "passivity" in managing the crisis.
"Zagora is not the only region to suffer from the lack of water," warns Abdelmalek Ihazrir, academic and author of a thesis on Moroccan water policy. "This is also the case for the Middle Atlas, Rhamna, the Rif (...), the rarefaction of the rains causes an overexploitation of groundwater throughout the country," he said, before advocating: need a new, more rational policy and alternative methods ".
Vulnerable region
On the executive side, meetings are held to find solutions. At the end of September, the head of the Saad-Eddin El Othmani government promised "emergency and strategic measures". A few days later, King Mohammed VI ordered to set up a "commission that will look into this matter to find adequate solutions in the coming months".
In a region of the world that is particularly vulnerable to water, Morocco is no exception: more than 60% of the population of the Middle East and North Africa live in areas subject to high or very high water stress high, compared with 35% globally, alerts at the end of August the World Bank.
In Algeria, in the early 2000s and in 2013, the problem of access to drinking water provoked protest movements that sometimes degenerated into clashes, particularly in Setif (north).
In Tunisia, where people are particularly dependent on winter rains and the filling of dams, many cuts were made in the summer of 2016 due to drought. They sometimes lasted for weeks.
At the time, the Tunisian Water Observatory warned against a possible "rising of thirst" in disadvantaged areas where there are already strong social tensions.
To watch the video:
https://www.facebook.com/AkhbarZagora/videos/720881564768862/
The police arrested twenty-one people, sixteen of whom are currently in police custody, reports Al Massae. Seven persons were brought before the judge of the Zagora District Court.
Concerning the human damage, four policemen were wounded by stone throws and a woman was transported to the regional hospital of the city.
Zagora: "manifestations of thirst" against water shortages
"Living without water is a hell!", Said Atmane Rizkou, president of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH) in Zagora, the main city of southern Morocco struck by this "water crisis". "The situation is critical, it is a daily suffering for the inhabitants", also indignant Jamal Akchbabe, president of the Association of friends of the environment of Zagora, joins by telephone.
Located at the gates of the desert, Zagora, a locality with more than 30,000 inhabitants, is located almost 700 km from Rabat, beyond the massifs of the Atlas. Since the beginning of the summer, "families stay several days without tap water, others only have a few hours a day," says Akchbabe. "This water is more undrinkable, so people buy drinking water sold in drums," he adds.
'Repression, insults, humiliation'
To make themselves heard, the inhabitants of Zagora have organized several peaceful demonstrations in the last few months, initially tolerated by the authorities. But on 24 September, law enforcement officials intervened to disperse a march and arrested seven people, prosecuted for "participating in an unauthorized demonstration", said the local head of the AMDH.
On 8 October, during a new march, the police "gauged the city and used force", calling on 21 people, charged with the same charges, while "clashes have opposed young protestors to the police" , according to Jamal Akchbabe. "The demonstrators have suffered repression, insults and humiliation. The city is in a state of siege," he criticized.
At the origin of this shortage, a rainfall deficit combined with the overexploitation of groundwater by agriculture, mainly "the cultivation of watermelon that consumes a lot of water," says Akchbabe.
The protesters accuse the Ministry of Agriculture of having encouraged this culture which "benefits the great farmers at the expense of the inhabitants". The National Drinking Water Authority (Onep) is also criticized for its "passivity" in managing the crisis.
"Zagora is not the only region to suffer from the lack of water," warns Abdelmalek Ihazrir, academic and author of a thesis on Moroccan water policy. "This is also the case for the Middle Atlas, Rhamna, the Rif (...), the rarefaction of the rains causes an overexploitation of groundwater throughout the country," he said, before advocating: need a new, more rational policy and alternative methods ".
Vulnerable region
On the executive side, meetings are held to find solutions. At the end of September, the head of the Saad-Eddin El Othmani government promised "emergency and strategic measures". A few days later, King Mohammed VI ordered to set up a "commission that will look into this matter to find adequate solutions in the coming months".
In a region of the world that is particularly vulnerable to water, Morocco is no exception: more than 60% of the population of the Middle East and North Africa live in areas subject to high or very high water stress high, compared with 35% globally, alerts at the end of August the World Bank.
In Algeria, in the early 2000s and in 2013, the problem of access to drinking water provoked protest movements that sometimes degenerated into clashes, particularly in Setif (north).
In Tunisia, where people are particularly dependent on winter rains and the filling of dams, many cuts were made in the summer of 2016 due to drought. They sometimes lasted for weeks.
At the time, the Tunisian Water Observatory warned against a possible "rising of thirst" in disadvantaged areas where there are already strong social tensions.
To watch the video:
https://www.facebook.com/AkhbarZagora/videos/720881564768862/
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