Moroccan artists receive professional ID cards

2008-08-07

The first ID cards have been issued to artists in Morocco, in the latest official step the government has taken to improve and regulate the profession.

By Sarah Touahri for Magharebia in Rabat – 07/08/08

[Sarah Touahri] Culture minister Tourya Jabrane says special ID cards will enhance the status of Moroccan artists and intellectuals.

Moroccan artists are to be issued a professional ID card by the Ministry of Culture for the first time. The first cards – distributed by King Mohammed VI last Wednesday (July 30th) during Throne Day celebrations – represent the latest step in organising the artistic profession, after medical coverage was made available on March 28th.

The measure will afford artists a more structured environment in which to work.

Culture Minister Touriya Jabrane called the initiative the culmination of several years of effort to improve recognition of the work of Moroccan artists and intellectuals, who generate new ideas and promote noble humanitarian values.

"This card is not just symbolic," she said. "It allows its bearer to benefit from a stable professional situation and gives social advantages. This document is also a reflection of the importance accorded by the state and society to the task of organising and developing the artistic profession."

Hassan Nafali, an advisor at the culture ministry, explained that this measure should make it easier for unions to protect the profession, particularly by bringing pressure to bear on employers. He says that officials will now be able to carry out inspections at film-making sites, to check that artists' rights have been respected and respond with legal action where they are not.

Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi said the next step is to pay closer attention to artists' social situation, to ensure the conditions necessary to promote creativity are being provided.

Artists welcomed the long-awaited initiative, saying it is a move in the right direction. Humourist Hassan El Fad says it is a symbol of the authorities' recognition of a profession which has been marginalised for many years.

The artistic trade has suffered from anarchy for a long time, said Amazigh singer Fatima Tabaâmranete. She feels the artist card will help to regulate the profession.

Said El Imam, a composer and a committee member in the National Association of Artists, also said chaos has reigned in the arts since independence, and that it is high time to make changes.

"We have two categories of artist," he said. "On the one hand, there are those who are recognised, and on the other hand there are those who seek recognition. The latter will have to provide references from the institutions in which they have worked."

Young musician Fathi Mouden said the fight to normalise the sector will enable talented youngsters to find the place they deserve on a crowded stage where there is a lack of real producers.

"We earnestly hope that the veterans will not decide to chase the youngsters away. Organisation of our trade will even make it possible to regulate revenues and will allow artists to live decently, rather than seeking additional work to meet the expenses of everyday living," he said.