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Rabat – Morocco displayed its commitment to coexistence and religious diversity during the city’s Moroccan-Jewish Week on Sunday evening, with officials and community leaders putting forward the North African country’s constitutional protections for its Jewish heritage.
“The Moroccan Constitution recognizes and protects the multiple components of Moroccan identity, including the Hebrew, Berber, and Saharan components,” said Souriya Otmani, Morocco’s ambassador to Canada, at a ceremony attended by members of Toronto’s Moroccan Jewish community and provincial and federal officials.
Otmani credited her country’s democratic institutions and reforms under King Mohammed VI’s leadership for making this pluralism possible. She stressed the special attention Moroccan monarchs have given to preserving Moroccan-Jewish heritage.
The ambassador outlined concrete actions that demonstrate this royal commitment, including enshrining the Hebrew influence in the constitutional preamble and rehabilitating places of worship and sanctuaries.
Meanwhile, Morocco has renovated synagogues, cemeteries, and Jewish quarters nationwide, opened several museums about the history of Judaism in the country — including Bayt Dakira (House of Memory) in Essaouira — maintained Hebrew courts, and established a Moroccan center for studies and research on Hebrew law.
“At a time when the world faces multiple wars, conflicts, tensions, hate speech, and various forms of radicalism and extremism, these actions make Morocco a haven of peace that embraces universalism by promoting interfaith dialogue and values of tolerance, coexistence, and living together,” Otmani said. She hailed Toronto’s Moroccan Jewish community for maintaining ties to their homeland.
Simon Keslassy, president of Toronto’s Moroccan Jewish community, said King Mohammed VI continues the legacy of his predecessors, Mohammed V and Hassan II, in promoting tolerance and coexistence.
He paid tribute to the monarch for numerous initiatives protecting Moroccan Jewish heritage, including restoring mausoleums, cemeteries, and ancient synagogues, and opening Jewish museums.
Several Canadian officials and elected representatives spoke at the ceremony, commending King Mohammed VI’s leadership in advancing peace and respect for cultural and religious diversity.
MWN with MAP
