Posted on 04/14/2005 6:47:25 PM PDT by JustaCowgirl
Liz Cheney, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs believes "Morocco could be a model for countries of the region," noting that "King Mohammed VI has put the country on the path of modernization while respecting Morocco's culture and traditions."
Cheney, who ended Tuesday a three-day official visit to Morocco, told Morocco Times that reforms instituted in the north African country were among the top issues she discussed with Moroccan officials.
"We have also discussed the new political parties' law and the new press code, which is before the parliament," she said, adding that talks also touched on education, notably girls' schooling.
On the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI)'s assistance to Morocco, Cheney said "we provide technical assistance as the (Moroccan) government looks at the reforms they need to implement once we have the FTA."
The Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed between the two countries in June 2004, eliminates tariffs on 95 percent of all bilateral trade between the United States and Morocco, and includes stringent protections for intellectual property and the environment.
MEPI has granted USD 6 million to assist Morocco in the framework of the US-Moroccan FTA, and allocated USD 2 million to fund a programme related to the new family law (Mudawana).
According to Cheney, MEPI aims to disseminate knowledge about the family law approved by the Moroccan parliament last year to promote the situation of women and enhance genre equality.
She pointed out that the purpose of programs like MEPI is to support "reforms coming from people themselves and from the government."
"I think reforms are absolutely coming from the inside. Morocco is the model for the whole region in this regard."
MEPI, she explained, is not trying to impose reforms from outside, noting that it supports "universal values including the right to education, the right to vote, the right to have a jobÉ etc."
"These are a whole range of issues to which we will respond with our resources to the changes that are coming from people who live in each individual country," she said.
There was, for many years, a Naval Air Station at Kenitra. Closed in 1982 The Moroccans there still miss "their " sailors
You can do it all along th Moroccan Coast. I highly recommend the beaches around Agadir
In the souks in Rabat, it is not odd at all to see hijiabs and thong bikinis sold side by side. The beards are outnumbered by the very secular Moroccan populace at large. One sight commonly seen was Hijab and stilettos , worn together. The Moroccans were uniformly friendly and extremely nice. No Moroccan I encountered had a bad word about the US or Americans. Now, the French, another story. By the way, I went there alone, no tour group, just on limited business and a lot of wandering . Maroc is a poor country, no doubt , but the people there are terrific. The King is big time pro US, trained here in the US . both for his degree and Air Force pilot training. Just my observations. We could hardly do better for a strategic ally in North Africa.
I don't think that picture is entirely kind to her I would post a better one but photobucket is out at present
Thanks for the info. Good background on Morocco.
She obviously doesn't know Morocco very well to be able to say this.
Why do you say that?
With her oldest daughter Kate - 2 peas in a pod
With her mother
Check out this pic!!!
WOW!
Have you ever seen younger pictures of V.P. Cheney?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1384006/posts?page=28#28
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1384006/posts?page=69#69
This is probably the difference between Tunisia and Morocco the French influence
That is the picture I was talking about!
I like your photobucket. Glad it is back up!
Great lamb, belly dancers, and the waiters running around with the Fez on their heads.
Kids loved it.
In 1952
In 1959
And finally 2 of him and Lynne
In 1959
In 1962
And their culture has a history of thousands of years of absolute barbarism, from what little I know.
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So does Europe, Asia etc. They have a Jewish community that has been attacked in the past but in terms of Government intereference they have been treated ok form what I hear. It is probably closer to Turkey than Saudi Arabia on the list of dangerous Muslim countries.
Is that your autograph picture? Or did you clip it from the Net?
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