Shisha Crackdown in Meknes

The Mayor of Meknes has made a bold move in his struggle against the growth of  hookah cafes which have sprung up around the city. For now, tourists may find it difficult to find a venue for enjoying shisha.

In the latest raids 100 shisha cafes have been ordered to close their doors until further notice. Crowds of local people were astonished to see, not only the closing of their favourite cafes, but also  the arrest of many customers, managers and waiters.

The businesses targeted were all located in the city centre in the busy area of ​​Al Hamria. Other areas of the city have been told to expect similar raids as officials want to eradicate the shisha industry in Meknes.

Other cities in the country may be less keen to follow the example of Meknes as the smoking of shisha is popular with tourists. However, Meknes authorities are resolute in their drive to wipe out shisha as they believe it exposes adolescents to crime and prostitution and to a significant and dangerous trend of out-of-school education.

Tourism operators are not concerned and offer the shisha experience to their clients. Many tourist websites claim shisha is part of the experience of Morocco. Some have guides to the etiquette of shisha smoking.

"When visiting another country, engaging in some of the more unique local practices is something you should try out. While in the mystical city of Marrakesh, taking part in a shisha-smoking session will let you experience an ancient communal event and appreciate the culture of Morocco a little better." - Canadian Traveller.com

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Shisha in Morocco - Government Backs Down on Anti-Shisha Law

Last month the governing PJD parliamentary group proposed a law criminalising the trade and consumption of shisha or use of hookahs in public places, including pubs, nightclubs, clubs and all business establishments. The move was greeted with dismay by major hotels, bar owners and tourism operators, who say that "shisha and mint tea" are experiences sought after by tourists visiting the country

The bill set out to punish any trade involving the sale of shisha with a prison sentence ranging from one year to five years and a fine of 20,000 to 50,000 DH  (2,000 to 5,000 USD)

In addition, the proposed law stipulated that any organisation found with shisha or hookah would be closed immediately by local authorities for up to 3 months.

Consumers are no exception, with the proposal that smokers be imprisoned from three months to three years and with a fine of up to 20,000 dh.

According to parliamentarians of the PJD, the bill intended to fill a legal vacuum regarding the sale of the hookah and to protect citizens, especially young people from the harmful effects of hookah on health.

Shisha is a popular tourist experience

Backflip?

But now, in a surprising backflip, the PJD parliamentary group has withdrawn the proposed law.

Members of the PJD are now expressing surprise the bill's sudden cancellation, yet, according to Al Massae newspaper, "strong" government pressure was behind the cancellation of the bill and the backing down of the caucus.

This bill had previously won a majority of a group who believed that "shisha contributes to crime, including prostitution of underage girls and is considered enemy # 1 of the PJD," the newspaper said.

Mint tea and shisha

And Meanwhile ...

Meanwhile in the northern city of Tangier, a regional governor from an opposition party took a very different attitude to smoking — but not of tobacco. Last week human rights organisations, local groups and international representatives met at an international conference on marijuana, organised by governor Ilyas El Omari of the centre-left Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM). His region includes the Rif, a mountainous area famed for its cannabis production. Locally known as kif, marijuana has long been the main source of income for local farmers. The conference sought alternatives to government repression of the marijuana trade, which has decimated incomes in the impoverished region and targeted small consumers.

Representatives decried the failure of Morocco’s war on drugs, and encouraged the country to rethink its potential as an increasingly popular source of marijuana for the European market. While the sale and consumption of marijuana is still illegal in the country, analysts estimate the market is worth 10% of Morocco’s GDP, roughly $11.7 billion a year.

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Medina Gossip #3507

Princess Lalla Salma honoured in Senegal.

Princess Lalla Salma, spouse of king Mohammed VI of Morocco, was decorated by President Abdoulaye Wade with the Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit, the highest honour bestowed in Senegal.

The decoration ceremony was attended by Senegal's First lady, Viviane Wade, and by Morocco's ambassador to Dakar, Moha Ouali Tagma.

"Princess Lalla Salma deserves the award for her humanitarian actions in Morocco and abroad," Vivian Wade told the press following the decoration ceremony, noting that "this decoration is also a gesture of admiration for Morocco and for the royal family."

Princess Lalla Salma arrived in Dakar on Sunday to take part in the 15th International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections in Africa (CISMA), convening in the Senegalese capital on December 3-7.

So you want a break?

This week Gran Canaria airlines have started a new service between Morocco and the Canary Islands. The flights will be twice weekly (on Mondays and Fridays) - the catch for those living in Fez and wanting a short vacation is that that the flights depart from Agadir. Domage bizef!

Chers amis de la Communauté internationale en Médina,

Pour ceux d'entre vous qui avaient eu connaissance, par Zelliges & Mosaïques, du ''pot'' de la Saint Nicolas en Médina, l'Evènement est toujours bien prévu le 6 décembre mais le site a changé.

C'est au riad Alkantara, chez Abdelfattah et Camille ( 24, Oued Souaffine - Douh - contact@riadalkantara.com), qu'on se réunira finalement à partir de 18 heures (le riad Batha abritant une activité culturelle ce soir là). Que nos aimables hôtes soient remerciés d'accueillir les anciens comme les nouveaux résidents, ceux qui sont inquiets comme ceux qui sont sereins, pour mieux se connaître et mieux se faire comprendre, en toute amitié et sans protocole aucun.

La réunion pouvant servir à ''donner une voix'' à la communauté étrangère de la Médina, n'hésitez pas à en parler autour de vous et à y faire venir des résidents que nous ne connaissons pas : il y en a beaucoup.

A bientôt et bien amicalement,

Bertrand Lavezzari
Consul général de France à Fès

Riad Alkantara

Once more in English!

Riad Alkantara

Dear friends of the international community, living in the Medina,Some of you may have already heard (through Zelliges & Mosaïques) about the ''drink'' planned for the celebration of Saint Nicolas, on 6. December. The Event is still here but the venue has changed.

Riad Alkantara, with Abdelfattah and Camille as hosts ( 24, Oued Souaffine - Douh - contact@riadalkantara.com), will finally welcome you, from 6.PM on, (as riad Batha is staging a cultural event that same evening). Our gratitude being expressed to them as they will welcome old as new foreign residents, those who worry as well as those who keep cool.. the goal being to get to know each other better, make some points of common interest and spread understanding, in all friendship and without protocol.

This meeting might even provide the foreign community in the Medina with a ''voice'' of its own. So, please, don't hesitate to spread the invitation to those unknown of us, among the foreign residents. They are plenty.

Welcome, all !

Yours, friendly,
Bertrand Lavezzari.
Consul général de France à Fès

Morocco to turn prison cells into cultural centres

Secret jails that once held Moroccan soldiers arrested after failed coup attempts in appalling conditions are to be converted into centres that will beat witness to their history.

Morocco's Advisory Council on Human Rights has signed an agreement for the project with the government, the president of the CCDH, Ahmed Herzenni said.

"We will convert the centres that were places of terrible abuses of freedom into memorial spots that celebrate hope and the future," said Herzenni.

But one of the country's most renowned detention centres, where 58 soldiers were jailed for 18 years after their part in a failed 1971 coup against King Hassan II, is not on the list of centres up for restoration.

Tazmamart

Herzenni said discussions with the victims and their families were still going on over whether to include the Tazmamart prison in southeast Morocco on the list.

The agreement followed recommendations from a 2004 truth commission presented to King Mohammed VI on serious human rights violations between 1960 and 1999.


Attention Fashion Tragics!

The famous French fashion and style outlet Galeries Lafayette has decided to expand with an investment of 130 million dirhams in Morocco. The French department store chain has signed a partnership agreement with Aksal which gives the Moroccan retail group exclusive operating rights to its brand in Morocco. So we can expect the fashion tragics to be making a few more shopping trips to Casablanca.

Margot the Marrakech Mystic Says...

When hemlines go up, so does the market. Well, in Morocco, djellaba hemlines for both men and women have come way up in the past few years. From ankle-length, they have now come up to mid-calf length. But what’s been going up in Morocco is real estate prices!

With the worldwide economic slowdown, I imagine it will affect Morocco, even though it hasn’t yet done so very much. Tourists are still coming, and according to a friend I know who owns a travel agency, Europeans don’t seem to be cancelling their holidays to Morocco, at least not yet.

So, if and when the economic downturn hits Morocco, will hemlines come down again? We’ll see.

You can reach Margot here: Margot

Morocco's new smart card

A source in the Morocco's national security service tells us the contact-less smart cards, required for all citizens over 18, will be used to fight terrorism. Artists are issued an additional professional card.

Morocco's national security service has begun issuing millions of "contactless," biometric identification smart cards to simultaneously fight terrorism and guarantee respect for "citizens' rights and liberty," according to that North African government.

Moroccan citizens over 18 years old are required to carry the new ID, but on the upside; the card conveniently supplants birth certificates, certificate of residence, certificate of life, and certificate of nationality in "all procedures for which these documents must be provided."

Artists, however, will continue to be issued a professional ID card by the Ministry of Culture.

The smart cards hold personal details and biometric data, and can be used as travel documents, as well as a way for the government to "control migration flows." Naturally, no one besides the cardholder and authorized government entities will have access to the personal data in the bar code and on the microchip.

French aerospace giant Thales provided the system, which included the security software, document production equipment, and the "connectivity with the Automated Fingerprint Identification System which acquires digital fingerprints."

This is the world's first national ID system based on contactless smart-card technology, according to the press release. The Direction Generale de la Securite Nationale (DGSN) has issued at least a million cards to date and plans to distribute 20 million more over the next four years.

The ID cards for artists, meanwhile, afford them a "more structured environment" in which to work and ensure "conditions necessary to promote creativity," according to the Ministry. There also are unspecified "social benefits."


The rising popularity of shisha among Moroccan women.

A whisper has it that there is concern in more conservative circles about the growing number of women who now publicly smoke shisha. Well, the news for those conservatives is that they need to "get out more often" . Shisha is hugely popular and the worst thing they could do is drive it underground where the authorities can't keep an eye on it.

"Shameful" mingling?

According to Miriam (18) from the Fez Medina, 'All my friends enjoy shisha and it is so much better than cigarettes.' However not everyone agrees. Authorities in Casablanca actually shut down shisha cafes throughout the city after receiving several complaints during the holy month of Ramadan that the cafes promote vice and spread disease.

Moroccan preacher sheikh Abdul-Bari al-Zamzami, a member of the Moroccan Scholars Association claimed that the cafes were dens of vice and corruption.

"Shisha cafes are a disgrace to the city and to all Morocco. They are a way to seduce minors and spread corruption," he said.

In addition to the personal health risks of smoking sihsha, which include lung cancer, shisha cafes have been linked to the increased prevalence of tuberculosis in several Arab countries. According to the World Health Organization regional office in Cairo, about 17 percent of TB cases in the eastern Mediterranean are attributable to smoking the water pipes.

Recent statistics issued by the Ministry of Health indicate that Casablanca has the highest number of TB cases out of any Moroccan cities, with 25,562 cases reported in 2007 alone. The rate of infection was estimated at 82 cases for every 100,000.

Haya added that in addition to health problems cafes encourage many ethical violations since men and women "mingle in a shameful way."

Casablanca mayor Mohamed Sajed declined to comment on the decision to close the cafes.

Not exactly a den of vice!

The controversy over shisha cafes started in the City Council where many members considered them hotbeds of indecency and accused many of its regulars of replacing tobacco with pot or other narcotics.

And from the desk of our Sport's Editor...

According to Dominick, the Moroccan national team beat its Libyan counterpart 3-1 on Saturday in the first leg match part of the final round qualifiers for African nations championship for locally based players (CHAN-2009).

Two Moroccan goals were scored by Mustapha Allaoui at the 11th and 63rd minutes, while Mohamed Madihi scored the third goal at the 85th min. The Libyan goal was netted at the 21st min. by Oussama Saad El Fizani.

The return match will be played on December 12 in Tripoli. The winner will qualify to the finals of the first CHAN- 2009 tournament slated for February 22 through March 8, 2009 in Cote d'Ivoire.

Finally - Spare a thought for another historic city.

Restaurant in St Marks Square...

Venice has just been hit today by the worst floods in more then two decades. Tourists have had to flee as waters took over huge areas of the city.

Tags: Moroccan Morocco Fes, Maghreb news

American Travel Writers in Fez.

Neq Embroidery

Spring, O'Brien, a public relations firm specializing in destination marketing and representing the Moroccan National Tourist Office in the US sent a group of top travel journalists to Fez. Today they toured the Medina and hopefully will write some very positive stories about their experience.

Lead by Nora Brossard from Spring, O'Brien, and with their guide, Si Mohammed, they started the day at Bab Boujeloud and visited Neq Embroidery, arguably the finest embroidery shop in the Medina. After a demonstration of the art of embroidery they continued on to Cafe Clock for a quick coffee and shisha.

The rest of the day was spent wandering the Medina visiting traditional craft shops, a restaurant, weaving and mat making workshops and the vegetable souq at R'Cif.

Publications and magazines they represent include, Global Traveler, Good Housekeeping, Dallas Morning News, Away.com, Brilliant Magazine, Gatehouse Media, IgoUgo.com, Travelocity.com, Business Traveler, Miami Herald, and Get Away with Fran!

We will try and discover what they write about Fez - and then report back. In the meantime here is a seldom seen sight - journalists hitting the shisha at Cafe Clock!

Ah... shisha nirvana

But this IS the way I play my flute...

How come we didn't learn this at university?

Yep... same old shisha, just like Lebanon, or was that Cairo?

POSTSCRIPT
And with the speed of an accomplished blogger, Fran Golden has already posted a story on her blog - Get Away with Fran. Read it here: Fantastic Fez

(Photo Fran Golden - other photos: Sandy McCutcheon)

Tags: Moroccan Morocco Fes, Maghreb news

New tapas bar opens in the Fez Medina

The new "F" word in Fez - "Flounge"

Wandering along new Zkzak Rouah near the Talaa Kbira, try pausing at number 95. Here you will find a new tapas bar with the intriguing name of the F Lounge, or should that be Flounge? In any case it is an interesting place to pause in the heady atmosphere of the Fez Medina.

The success of Café Clock has spawned several new places including the Mezzanine Bar opposite the entrance to the Jnan Sbil gardens and Fes et Gestes can be found at 39 Arsat El Hamoumi in Ziat

Flounge offers coffees, sodas, and tapas-like briouates filled with fish. The chill music is on and the light is fashionably dim. Shisha can also be enjoyed on three banquettes set aside for this purpose.

For those unfamiliar with smoking shisha - Flounge has this to say - "Smoking a Water Pipe is nothing like smoking a cigarette, Cigarettes are for nervous people, competitive people, people on the run. When you smoke a Water Pipe, you have time to think. It teaches you patience and tolerance, and gives you an appreciation of a good company. Sheesha smokers have a much more balanced approach to life than cigarette smokers do. The smoke is noticeably cooler than cigarette smoke, and lightly intoxicating. Before long, the water begins to turn brown; smokers' say it is filtering out many of the harmful substances that they would otherwise be inhaling."

On hot days, or in the chill of winter it is good to have so many choices in the medina and Flounging about could well catch on.

Tags: Moroccan Morocco Fes, Maghreb news