This contribution focuses on the ‘Arab Spring’ in Morocco and on the interactions between the mainly urban-based activists that made up the 20 February Movement (F20M), and the population in rural areas. Based on six weeks of fieldwork between November 2013 and March 2014, mostly in the areas in and near Marrakech, we find that while the urban F20M events stimulated and inspired protests in rural areas, in practice there were only sporadic contacts based on the activists’ personal feelings of belonging rather than their organizational membership. This is mainly due to discursive disconnects between the centre and periphery. As for the outcomes, in particular the new constitution, many respondents believe that nothing has changed so far.

doi.org/10.1080/13629395.2015.1033900, hdl.handle.net/1765/79402
Mediterranean Politics
International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University (ISS)

Bergh, S., & Rossi-Doria, D. (2015). Plus ça Change? Observing the Dynamics of Morocco's ‘Arab Spring’ in the High Atlas. Mediterranean Politics, 20(2), 198–216. doi:10.1080/13629395.2015.1033900