Abstract
Decades of continuing emigration, mostly to Western Europe, have resulted in large expatriate Moroccan communities. The Moroccan authorities seek to maintain strong ties with their overseas citizens, particularly in the economic and cultural spheres. They have thus introduced a broad set of measures to safeguard the connection, ideally for generations.
The aim of this paper is to analyze Moroccan policy towards its emigrants, and its underlying motivations, during the reign of King Mohammed VI, from 1999 until present-day. The Moroccan community in the Netherlands serves as a case study for the analysis. By examining the policies of King Mohammed VI towards Moroccan citizens in the Netherlands, it will become possible to define the Moroccan state's ongoing interest in its expatriate community. The paper focuses on clarifying the Moroccan ‘agenda’: the motivations and explanations underpinning its migrant policy. It does so by looking at the various programs that government institutions initiated in the economic, political, and cultural-religious realms, demonstrating how Moroccan involvement in Dutch-Moroccan affairs contributes to the accomplishment of Moroccan government objectives. In evaluating its effectiveness, it will also examine the responses of the migrants themselves to Moroccan state policies.
As opposed to other scholarly works on Moroccan migrant policy, the time frame of this paper is confined to the rule of King Mohammed VI. A review of the literature (e.g., Laurie Brand, Hein de Haas, Said Bouddouft) shows that authors have focused on the period of King Hassan II’s rule, when migrant policy was repressive and intimidating. However, also Mohammed VI, during his thirteen years on the throne, has introduced numerous measures and established institutions related to the migrant community, indicating that a migrant policy is still firmly in place - although in a significantly altered shape.
Moreover, previous examinations of Moroccan migrant policy tend to prioritize Morocco’s economic interest in its migrants over other interests. My paper will give equal time to the cultural and religious aspects of Moroccan policy.
Methodologically, my study will combine a textual approach of selected secondary sources with primary data collection, using a contextual quantitative method. As primary material, I will employ Moroccan policy directives, speeches, statements and newspapers from the last thirteen years. A study of the Dutch media's documentation of Morocco's migrant policy, as well as survey and anecdotal evidence of the migrants' views and responses, greatly added to my analysis.
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