Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09RABAT374
2009-05-03 18:32:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Rabat
Cable title:
GENDER AND RELIGIOUS REFORM: WOMEN "IMAMS" IN
how-toVZCZCXRO5078 PP RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHTRO DE RUEHRB #0374/01 1231832 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 031832Z MAY 09 FM AMEMBASSY RABAT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0063 INFO RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE RUCNMGH/MAGHREB COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 RABAT 000374
SIPDIS
STATE FOR G/IWI, DRL/IRF, NEA/RA AND NEA/MAG
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/03/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI KISL KWMN MO
SUBJECT: GENDER AND RELIGIOUS REFORM: WOMEN "IMAMS" IN
MOROCCO
REF: 06 RABAT 1042 (NOTAL)
Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 RABAT 000374
SIPDIS
STATE FOR G/IWI, DRL/IRF, NEA/RA AND NEA/MAG
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/03/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI KISL KWMN MO
SUBJECT: GENDER AND RELIGIOUS REFORM: WOMEN "IMAMS" IN
MOROCCO
REF: 06 RABAT 1042 (NOTAL)
Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) Summary: Morocco has successfully made gender a
central component of religious reform in its efforts to both
counter religious extremism and promote women's participation
in all areas of civic life. Beginning with the
ground-breaking 2004 reform of the Family Code (Moudawana),
and extending to a greater inclusion of women at every level
of politics and religion, reform has been comparatively swift
and far-reaching. Among the more striking and controversial
reforms are those designed to promote the role of women as
Islamic theological leaders or &mourchidats.8 They
minister to men as well as women and some teach in prisons.
Women are on the High Council of Ulema as well as the Ulema
Council for Moroccans Abroad. Although some religious
conservatives grumbled at these reforms, women's
participation in mosques and religious life has a long
tradition in Morocco, and the new mourchidats are now
integrated into the national culture. End Summary.
--------------
Women, Islam and Reform
--------------
2. (SBU) King Mohammed VI has called the advancement of
women's rights "the cornerstone" of Morocco's strategy of
building a modern democratic society. Following the
Casablanca terrorist attacks of 2003, and hints of religious
radicalization among Moroccans at home and abroad, the King
initiated a series of reforms designed to restructure and
revitalize religious thought and instruction in Morocco. One
significant innovation among the King's reforms involved
creating a more prominent role for women as religious leaders.
--------------
Mourchidats: "Equal to Male Imams"
--------------
3. (SBU) As Commander of the Faithful, i.e., the Supreme
religious leader for the Moroccan Malachite branch of Sunni
Islam, a role that also encompasses a responsibility for Jews
and even Christians, the King began a program to train and
appoint women as mourchidats or spiritual guides. When the
initiative was announced in 2005, protests by religious
conservatives prompted the Palace to clarify that the duties
of a mourchidat would differ from those of imams in that they
would not be allowed to lead prayers. Aside from this
difference, however, the government has since taken great
pains to develop a framework under which women spiritual
leaders have a status equal to their male counterparts.
4. (C) Mohammed Amine Echouaibi, Regional Delegate of the
Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs, who oversees the
mourchidat training program, told PolOff that the GOM views
mourchidats as equal to male imams. He noted that both
groups undergo the same training, are held to the same
rigorous standards, and receive the same salary for their
work (at least 800 MAD or the equivalent of USD 100 per
month). While only imams can lead prayers, Morocco's 200
mourchidats may deliver and monitor sermons in the mosques
over which they preside, organize activities centered around
the mosque, and conduct counseling sessions. Although women
make up the majority of those seeking their guidance,
mourchidats are encouraged to provide counsel to men as well.
The mourchidats use these counseling sessions to address
spiritual concerns, as well as to educate women about their
legal rights under the new Family Code (Moudawana).
5. (SBU) Outside of the mosque, mourchidats minister in
areas where radical teachings may find a receptive audience
and seek to promote openness and modernity within society.
Four mourchidats and six imams, for example, visit Morocco's
Sale prison every week to organize religious activities and
discussions, and to encourage moderate religious thought.
Sale prison is one of the principal detention centers for
Islamic extremists. They also organize debates and
conferences at universities geared toward populations they
feel are susceptible to extremist teachings.
--------------
Becoming a Mourchidat
--------------
6. (SBU) Samira, a married mother of two, fits the average
profile of a mourchidat. She is in her 30s, and holds both
Bachelor,s and Master's degrees. While a Master's degree is
compulsory for the program, it can be in any subject.
RABAT 00000374 002 OF 003
(Samira's is in poetry). After being selected out of more
than 800 applicants, she and 50 other women spent a full year
in training, taking courses in religion, humanities, women's
rights, science, and international relations for eight hours
a day. She was educated side-by-side with her male
counterparts who went on to become imams.
7. (SBU) Asked to describe a typical day as a mourchidat,
Samira said, "Nothing is ever typical. Some days I am a
psychiatrist, other days a counselor, social worker, lawyer
or doctor." She noted that her mandate has recently expanded
to include AIDS education, information on women's legal
rights, and divorce counseling, and said that her greatest
challenge is to provide advice in a non-judgmental way. She
struggles to balance work and family commitments and says
that her parents encouraged her to pursue a less religious,
more scholarly profession. "But what I have chosen is more
than a profession, it is a mission," she emphasized.
--------------
Reviving the Prominent Role of Women
--------------
9. (SBU) According to the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic
Affairs, the number of women attending mosques has risen in
recent years, and the program was partly a response to this
emerging need. Women have historically served as teachers in
Moroccan mosques. One contact noted that her
great-great-grandmother served for years as a teacher in a
mosque, and argued that the Palace is rightly trying to
revive the prominent role of women in Islam. Echouaibi
emphasized that although women have previously ministered in
mosques, this is the first time their activities have been
institutionalized, and compensated.
--------------
Using Gender to Counter Radicalization
--------------
9. (C) Although the Government plans to expand the
mourchidat program because of high demand, not all welcome
the changes. Abdelaziz Taleb, Chief of Staff to Morocco's
Secretary General of the Government said that, not
surprisingly, religious fundamentalists had provided the most
opposition to gender-related reforms, including those
encouraging a more prominent role for women in religion.
While he acknowledged that rapid change could provoke a
backlash among more traditional elements, Taleb emphasized
the need to push ahead anyway. "We are inundated with
broadcasted sermons encouraging us to be increasingly more
conservative, which often means that women should be less
visible and have fewer rights," he stated. Without the full
participation of women, Morocco's gradual movement toward
democracy would fail, he asserted.
10. (C) The Palace believes that promoting the rights of
women in all spheres fundamentally undermines the objectives
and ammunition of religious zealots who seek to restrict
women's empowerment, and other reforms initiated by the
Palace, Taleb said. By challenging parochial ideas of
gender, the Palace is effectively challenging the legitimacy
of other radical doctrines as well, Raja Naji El Makkaoui,
Professor in Islamic Studies at Mohammed V University,
explained. Echouaibi of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs
agreed, calling the mourchidats "a counterweight" to
extremist tendencies that help the population stay faithful
to Morocco's history of tolerance by refuting recently
imported foreign interpretations of Islam.
11. (C) Many Muslim countries also voiced opposition to the
King's religious reforms, viewing them as a radical departure
from Islamic practice, Abderahim Rahhly, the new Chief of the
Americas Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Cooperation, told us. Most complained that Morocco's actions
created pressure on them to take similar actions, he
explained, underlining the GOM's pioneering role in the
region and among Muslim countries in gender-based reforms.
--------------
More Leadership Roles for Women
--------------
12. (SBU) In addition to the mourchidat program, the King
has institutionalized the practice of women delivering
religious discourses in mosques and in his daily lecture
series during the month of Ramadan. Considered an extremely
high honor reserved for only the most
respective/authoritative teachers of Islam, six Moroccan
women have now earned this distinction. While some critics
RABAT 00000374 003 OF 003
have complained that a woman at the pulpit contradicted the
Koran, the Palace has argued that rather than introducing a
new doctrine, it was simply applying correct Koranic
teachings, noting that the Prophet Mohammed accorded his wife
Aisha a similar honor.
13. (C) Women currently represent one-fourth of the members
of Moroccan High Council of Ulema, the religious body
overseeing doctrine and Islamic teachings, according to the
Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs. They also
constitute one-fourth of the Council of Ulema charged with
ministering to Moroccans residing abroad (mostly in Europe),
a group of particular concern to the GOM given the
involvement of Moroccan expatriates in the 2004 Madrid train
bombings. At least one woman also serves on each of the 16
regional Councils of Ulema. In short, through women, the
Palace has created a force to promote and institutionalize
moderate Islam.
--------------
Comment
--------------
14. (C) The public acceptance of the mourchidat program
demonstrates again how Morocco is a leader in societal and
religious reform in the Muslim world. While Morocco,s 200
mourchidats are few in number compared to Morocco,s 45,722
imams and 1,600 other recognized preachers, their influence
is growing. They represent another important part of the
GOM,s ongoing efforts to promote religious moderation and
tolerance. One factor which may have eased its acceptance is
the relatively strong role of women in Berber society. As a
result, this reform may not be so easily replicated
elsewhere, but it does feed into the growing phenomenon of
Islamo-feminism. This innovation, although fully aligned
with our own goals of promoting moderation, modernization and
reforms, was an independent initiative conceived, debated,
and implemented by Moroccan authorities. The success of the
mourchidats emphasizes how, despite some flaws documented by
our human rights and religious freedom reporting, Morocco
remains committed to extending full rights and participation
to women. End Comment.
*****************************************
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website;
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco
*****************************************
Jackson
SIPDIS
STATE FOR G/IWI, DRL/IRF, NEA/RA AND NEA/MAG
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/03/2019
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI KISL KWMN MO
SUBJECT: GENDER AND RELIGIOUS REFORM: WOMEN "IMAMS" IN
MOROCCO
REF: 06 RABAT 1042 (NOTAL)
Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) Summary: Morocco has successfully made gender a
central component of religious reform in its efforts to both
counter religious extremism and promote women's participation
in all areas of civic life. Beginning with the
ground-breaking 2004 reform of the Family Code (Moudawana),
and extending to a greater inclusion of women at every level
of politics and religion, reform has been comparatively swift
and far-reaching. Among the more striking and controversial
reforms are those designed to promote the role of women as
Islamic theological leaders or &mourchidats.8 They
minister to men as well as women and some teach in prisons.
Women are on the High Council of Ulema as well as the Ulema
Council for Moroccans Abroad. Although some religious
conservatives grumbled at these reforms, women's
participation in mosques and religious life has a long
tradition in Morocco, and the new mourchidats are now
integrated into the national culture. End Summary.
--------------
Women, Islam and Reform
--------------
2. (SBU) King Mohammed VI has called the advancement of
women's rights "the cornerstone" of Morocco's strategy of
building a modern democratic society. Following the
Casablanca terrorist attacks of 2003, and hints of religious
radicalization among Moroccans at home and abroad, the King
initiated a series of reforms designed to restructure and
revitalize religious thought and instruction in Morocco. One
significant innovation among the King's reforms involved
creating a more prominent role for women as religious leaders.
--------------
Mourchidats: "Equal to Male Imams"
--------------
3. (SBU) As Commander of the Faithful, i.e., the Supreme
religious leader for the Moroccan Malachite branch of Sunni
Islam, a role that also encompasses a responsibility for Jews
and even Christians, the King began a program to train and
appoint women as mourchidats or spiritual guides. When the
initiative was announced in 2005, protests by religious
conservatives prompted the Palace to clarify that the duties
of a mourchidat would differ from those of imams in that they
would not be allowed to lead prayers. Aside from this
difference, however, the government has since taken great
pains to develop a framework under which women spiritual
leaders have a status equal to their male counterparts.
4. (C) Mohammed Amine Echouaibi, Regional Delegate of the
Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs, who oversees the
mourchidat training program, told PolOff that the GOM views
mourchidats as equal to male imams. He noted that both
groups undergo the same training, are held to the same
rigorous standards, and receive the same salary for their
work (at least 800 MAD or the equivalent of USD 100 per
month). While only imams can lead prayers, Morocco's 200
mourchidats may deliver and monitor sermons in the mosques
over which they preside, organize activities centered around
the mosque, and conduct counseling sessions. Although women
make up the majority of those seeking their guidance,
mourchidats are encouraged to provide counsel to men as well.
The mourchidats use these counseling sessions to address
spiritual concerns, as well as to educate women about their
legal rights under the new Family Code (Moudawana).
5. (SBU) Outside of the mosque, mourchidats minister in
areas where radical teachings may find a receptive audience
and seek to promote openness and modernity within society.
Four mourchidats and six imams, for example, visit Morocco's
Sale prison every week to organize religious activities and
discussions, and to encourage moderate religious thought.
Sale prison is one of the principal detention centers for
Islamic extremists. They also organize debates and
conferences at universities geared toward populations they
feel are susceptible to extremist teachings.
--------------
Becoming a Mourchidat
--------------
6. (SBU) Samira, a married mother of two, fits the average
profile of a mourchidat. She is in her 30s, and holds both
Bachelor,s and Master's degrees. While a Master's degree is
compulsory for the program, it can be in any subject.
RABAT 00000374 002 OF 003
(Samira's is in poetry). After being selected out of more
than 800 applicants, she and 50 other women spent a full year
in training, taking courses in religion, humanities, women's
rights, science, and international relations for eight hours
a day. She was educated side-by-side with her male
counterparts who went on to become imams.
7. (SBU) Asked to describe a typical day as a mourchidat,
Samira said, "Nothing is ever typical. Some days I am a
psychiatrist, other days a counselor, social worker, lawyer
or doctor." She noted that her mandate has recently expanded
to include AIDS education, information on women's legal
rights, and divorce counseling, and said that her greatest
challenge is to provide advice in a non-judgmental way. She
struggles to balance work and family commitments and says
that her parents encouraged her to pursue a less religious,
more scholarly profession. "But what I have chosen is more
than a profession, it is a mission," she emphasized.
--------------
Reviving the Prominent Role of Women
--------------
9. (SBU) According to the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic
Affairs, the number of women attending mosques has risen in
recent years, and the program was partly a response to this
emerging need. Women have historically served as teachers in
Moroccan mosques. One contact noted that her
great-great-grandmother served for years as a teacher in a
mosque, and argued that the Palace is rightly trying to
revive the prominent role of women in Islam. Echouaibi
emphasized that although women have previously ministered in
mosques, this is the first time their activities have been
institutionalized, and compensated.
--------------
Using Gender to Counter Radicalization
--------------
9. (C) Although the Government plans to expand the
mourchidat program because of high demand, not all welcome
the changes. Abdelaziz Taleb, Chief of Staff to Morocco's
Secretary General of the Government said that, not
surprisingly, religious fundamentalists had provided the most
opposition to gender-related reforms, including those
encouraging a more prominent role for women in religion.
While he acknowledged that rapid change could provoke a
backlash among more traditional elements, Taleb emphasized
the need to push ahead anyway. "We are inundated with
broadcasted sermons encouraging us to be increasingly more
conservative, which often means that women should be less
visible and have fewer rights," he stated. Without the full
participation of women, Morocco's gradual movement toward
democracy would fail, he asserted.
10. (C) The Palace believes that promoting the rights of
women in all spheres fundamentally undermines the objectives
and ammunition of religious zealots who seek to restrict
women's empowerment, and other reforms initiated by the
Palace, Taleb said. By challenging parochial ideas of
gender, the Palace is effectively challenging the legitimacy
of other radical doctrines as well, Raja Naji El Makkaoui,
Professor in Islamic Studies at Mohammed V University,
explained. Echouaibi of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs
agreed, calling the mourchidats "a counterweight" to
extremist tendencies that help the population stay faithful
to Morocco's history of tolerance by refuting recently
imported foreign interpretations of Islam.
11. (C) Many Muslim countries also voiced opposition to the
King's religious reforms, viewing them as a radical departure
from Islamic practice, Abderahim Rahhly, the new Chief of the
Americas Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Cooperation, told us. Most complained that Morocco's actions
created pressure on them to take similar actions, he
explained, underlining the GOM's pioneering role in the
region and among Muslim countries in gender-based reforms.
--------------
More Leadership Roles for Women
--------------
12. (SBU) In addition to the mourchidat program, the King
has institutionalized the practice of women delivering
religious discourses in mosques and in his daily lecture
series during the month of Ramadan. Considered an extremely
high honor reserved for only the most
respective/authoritative teachers of Islam, six Moroccan
women have now earned this distinction. While some critics
RABAT 00000374 003 OF 003
have complained that a woman at the pulpit contradicted the
Koran, the Palace has argued that rather than introducing a
new doctrine, it was simply applying correct Koranic
teachings, noting that the Prophet Mohammed accorded his wife
Aisha a similar honor.
13. (C) Women currently represent one-fourth of the members
of Moroccan High Council of Ulema, the religious body
overseeing doctrine and Islamic teachings, according to the
Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs. They also
constitute one-fourth of the Council of Ulema charged with
ministering to Moroccans residing abroad (mostly in Europe),
a group of particular concern to the GOM given the
involvement of Moroccan expatriates in the 2004 Madrid train
bombings. At least one woman also serves on each of the 16
regional Councils of Ulema. In short, through women, the
Palace has created a force to promote and institutionalize
moderate Islam.
--------------
Comment
--------------
14. (C) The public acceptance of the mourchidat program
demonstrates again how Morocco is a leader in societal and
religious reform in the Muslim world. While Morocco,s 200
mourchidats are few in number compared to Morocco,s 45,722
imams and 1,600 other recognized preachers, their influence
is growing. They represent another important part of the
GOM,s ongoing efforts to promote religious moderation and
tolerance. One factor which may have eased its acceptance is
the relatively strong role of women in Berber society. As a
result, this reform may not be so easily replicated
elsewhere, but it does feed into the growing phenomenon of
Islamo-feminism. This innovation, although fully aligned
with our own goals of promoting moderation, modernization and
reforms, was an independent initiative conceived, debated,
and implemented by Moroccan authorities. The success of the
mourchidats emphasizes how, despite some flaws documented by
our human rights and religious freedom reporting, Morocco
remains committed to extending full rights and participation
to women. End Comment.
*****************************************
Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website;
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco
*****************************************
Jackson