Rabat – A Moroccan petition calling for the cancellation of Oktoberfest, a German beer festival, has gone viral on social media in the past days, with over 21,000 Moroccans signing on to urge Moroccan authorities to halt the organization of the “heinous” event.
Muntada Taaziz Al Huwiya (Arabic for Identity Consolidation Forum) recently launched petition to denounce the organization of the first edition of the beer festival in Morocco, citing that the “heinous act [led by the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce is] in conflict with Moroccan laws, Islamic law, and Moroccan customs.”
Morocco World News was not able to find any press release by the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce commenting on the controversy. When contacted via email, the festival organizer did not react to our request for comment.
Tellingly, however, the German chamber has deleted promotional posts related to Oktoberfest on their social media accounts.
As the Oktoberfest festival had enjoyed wide coverage by the Moroccan media, the counter-campaign initiated by the petition has benefited from a relatively equal media coverage as it rallied the support of thousands of Moroccans.
Renowned Moroccan journalist Rachid Niny featured prominently among the many public figures who commented on the recent Oktoberfest boycott.
Taking to Facebook on Tuesday to share his opinion on the controversy, Niny argued the introduction of the traditional Bavarian beer festival in Morocco is a “matter of conflict between Bavarian German beer and French beer over a market where the number of sales points reaches 60,000, at a rate of 4 points of sale for every 1,000 people in urban areas.”
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Quoting data from Morocco’s Higher Commission for Planning (HCP), the journalist stated that Morocco’s annual consumption of alcoholic drinks is estimated at 400 million bottles of beer, 38 million bottles of wines, 1 million bottles of vodka, and 140,000 bottles of champagnes.
He added that Moroccans’ consumption of alcoholic beverages saw a 3-6% annual growth, a “frightening rate” compared to the decline of alcohol consumption in Europe.
As the Moroccan alcohol market grows, France’s Castel Group and the national state treasury, stakeholders at the nationwide beverage distribution firm, “Morocco Beverages” are expected to benefit from the surge in revenues, Niny argued.
Castle is the current owner of Flag Speciale, Morocco’s best-selling beer, according to the Moroccan journalist.
While the HCP includes traceable sales of alcoholic beverages in Morocco, the nationwide consumption of these drinks is expected to be higher as some citizens produce their own low-cost alcohol.
As Morocco’s revenues from alcoholic beverages are expected to surge over the coming years, they are also generated from the illegal selling of alcohol to Muslims. Notably, Moroccan law forbids the selling and advertising of alcohol to Muslims.
As Niny said, “the organizers of the Oktoberfest place themselves outside Moroccan law, as long as they want to move their “activity” out of the embassy, which is legally an extension of German soil in the Moroccan soil.”
Recalling civil and legal activism in Europe and the US for the restriction of alcohol consumption due to its impact on public health, Ninny urged Moroccan associations that combat cancer, diabetes, and liver diseases to “not only ensure care for the sick, but also reduce the tyranny of these brutal companies that invade homes, alleys, and commercial markets with their drinks.”
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