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| Humiliating conditions for Visa Seekers at French Consulates |
| HASSAN MASIKY | |||||||||||||||||||
 Washington DC, October 6, 2009-- For some Moroccans, it is the ticket to “paradise”, the answer to their economic and social problems, and the one way ticket to a glorious life. For others, it is a necessary piece of paper for a friendly visit, a vacation, or a business trip. The document in question is the “magic” Schengen Visa that allows entry to the European space.Recently, the conditions under which the Schengen Visa is delivered came to the spotlight after the death of a sickly Moroccan woman who was denied the Visa by the French embassy in Morocco. The death of de Aicha Mokhtari, who was suffering from bone cancer, after the French consulate in Casablanca refused to deliver her a “medical” Visa to pursue treatment, opened up the debate over the treatments of Moroccan citizens by the French consulates around world during the Visa application process. While France has issued to Moroccans the most Schengen Visas than any other European country, the “humiliating “ conditions and sub-human treatment that several Moroccans go thorough to obtain the pass are major concerns to human rights organizations. The idea of imposing a Visa on some foreign nationals to enter a given country is a sovereign right that countries can choose to enforce. France has every right to impose a Visa so to be able to control its borders and stop certain individuals that are deemed “unsuitable” to enter its territory. However, French Consulates should not use the Visa process to mentally ill-treat honest, hard working citizens from poor countries. The Visa was created to be granted to individuals that meet certain criteria. Yet, Some European countries, including France, are not forthcoming with details on the manners in which these criteria are implemented by Councilors, letting the door open for bureaucrats and embassy staff to “abuse” their power whenever they feel like it. Another instance highlighting the erratic nature of issuing Visas by French Consulates in Morocco is the case of the parents of Hamdi Balighe. This case is very poignant since it goes to the heart of the heartless nature of the Visa denials that the French Embassy staff is so eager to stamp. Mr. Balighe is a French Citizen of Moroccan decent whose efforts to bring his parents from Morocco to France to visit went in vein in front of a mean spirited and inhuman clause in the Visa requirements that mandate that applicants must have a certain amount of money in the bank, have regular jobs and show reasons for coming back to their home land after their stay. While these requirements make sense in some cases, they do not apply in others. Mr. Balighes parents are retired and may not have the “magic amount’ stated in the Visa application. But are these reasonable requirements in this case? Mr. Baligh, a resident of the region of Lille, went on hunger strike to protest this arbitrary decision by the French diplomats in Morocco. Clearly, the parents of Mr. Baligh are law obeying citizens who just want to visit their son and spend time with his family. The ill-treatments of Moroccan citizens by the French consulate do not stop in Rabat or Casablanca, but goes around the world. The case of Mr. Simo (not divulging the real name to protect the individual) was a flagrant show of the utter arrogance of some consulate staff in dealing with Moroccans citizens applying for Visas. Mohamed went to school in Tours, France where he received his bachelor degree. In the early eighties, he moved to Washington DC where he got married, secured his legal residency, and earned his MBA. And yet, Mohamed was denied a Visa by the French Consulate in Washington DC when he tried to go back to Tours to visit friends. Mohamed was clearly well established in the USA and had no reason to conduct in illegal activity in France. The refusal of his application stunned many Moroccans and Algerians in the Washington DC area and re-enforced the image of a “racist” France that does not want to distinguish between a legal application and an incomplete one when it comes from a North African unless the applicant is “connected”. The story of Mohamed continues. He went back to Morocco where he has been working for a multinational company. As a naturalized US Citizen, Mohamed does not need a Visa for France now, but yet refused to conduct business there. In fact, when his firm had a choice where to buy construction materials, Mohamed went with a Belgian firm instead of French one. Of course, the halls of the French embassy are full with Moroccans trying to secure the Visa despite all the horror stories of degradation. However, the image of France has been shaken by some of these stories. As more Moroccan Visa seekers receive better treatment in other European embassies, the French influence will ultimately diminish in Rabat. The Economic and political ties between Morocco and France are still strong but the current is shifting as more “Anglo-Saxon” Moroccans return home with a bad taste in their mouth as a result of an experience with a rude French bureaucrat. By HASSAN MASIKY
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Comments (9)
Moroccan Patriot
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The French are only a small part of the problem The French have the right to issue visas to whom ever they choose. All nations retain the right to control their borders, even Morocco. In Morocco, we treat Black Africans in the same racist ways that the French treat Moroccans... The solution for Moroccans is to simply not visit France. The solution for Moroccans is to stay right here in Morocco. If all Moroccans were to refuse to travel to other countries in search of justice and democracy, then we would eventually have justice and democracy here. |
Free1
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... Friend of mine has been trying to contact the Moroccan Consulate in Jaddah, Saudi Arabia multiple times so they can intervene on behalf of his old mother who went there for "Omrah" but the phone is always busy and the Guy who finally responded kept hanging on him for almost 10 times. He thinks that life of people is a joke or maybe he is busy smoking Hookah and he doesn’t not have time to help Moroccans in crisis which is the main reason the Moroccan Foreign Ministry entrusted him with that JOB...This is what I call a real humiliation Mr. Masiky!!! |
a guest
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BeReal Not until Moroccans earn their respect, no one will give it to them. Ever and never!! Wake up Moroccans. If the Moroccan government does not give a "sh......" about its own citizens, do you think the French will? PLEASE. |
a guest
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Spark The Moroccan government does not have the courage to retaliate to the French embassy with a similar fashion. So instead of crying at ourselves, action is needed from each individual. -Boycott French products (including movies, TV channels and websites). -Boycott French language. -If you meet a French person outside France, force him or her to communicate with you in an other language other than French. Or at least don't start shivering your mouth trying to sound like a French, just because some European looking people are sitting next to you on the plane or train...Moroccans in Morocco do that a lot, even among themselves ! I am sure when a French sees such a scene, he detects the weakness of the Moroccan psyche. France spends billions to keep its language dominate in her ex-colonies, through the mass media, movies, exhibitions of all sort,art etc... Learn the best you can from the French, but convert it to a different language. That should put him in his place, and put you in yours ! Promote whatever you want, just do not promote the "Francophonie"! |
Free1
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How about treatments of Moroccans in Morocco? Well written article Mr. Masiky, but, there is no comparison when it comes to the humiliation that the Moroccans have to endure when dealing in the daily basis with various Government departments from corruption, inhuman treatments in the Police departments ( even if you are going to obtain the Identity card!!) to randomly arrests… Even “Mqadam” will make your life hell, increase your blood pressure and it might cause you a heart attack, if you never danced before, you will be my friend, he will ask you for more documents to issue you a prove of residence which is his job or came up with imaginary documents until you show the almighty DIRHAM and the doors will be wide open and your misery will disappear… Al-Qaid is another story, he will not accept 50DH but he will impose his own daily or monthly taxation on Café owners and poor Moroccans who sell fruits in the streets and if you refuse, you will suffer consequences…you may be jailed for a crime that you never commit because you piss off the Holy Qaid!!! Brother, There are no comparison to the degree of humiliation that the Moroccans are living in daily, what the French are doing might look inhuman but it is very human compare to our treatment. In the end, they are the strong and we are the weak and it has been like that for centuries now! Go to the Arab Gulf and you see the real humiliation from our ARAB, MUSLIM Hypocrites BROTHERS…you will question if we really share their ethnicity or their faith??? You won’t even be treated like third citizens or ooops third foreigners because there is no such thing as being citizens over there!!! (It does not matter if you live all your life over there; it is just against their LAW or culture to become their citizen while they can elsewhere!) |
a guest
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Ali Ajbaili, Long Live Imazighen and Timazighen Interesting article. Some of the examples used don't help further the argument (the woman with cancer, sadly, I wouldn't expect to be treated, and I think it's more the responsibility of the guy in France to visit his own parents in Morocco, rather than the other way round). The final example is much more interesting, and relates far better to your own situation. The Moroccan who is now a US citizen, has an MBA, and will now not deal with France. This does suggest a level of stupidity by the French Embassy. Ultimately, I think this is a flaw with all public service organizations. They are generally inefficient, bureaucratic, and don't use common sense. The Human Rights Act is a complete joke, and creates more problems than it solves. Ultimately, what goes around comes around. We will win at the end. Nothing in life ever seems to be easy. Tamazighet I Toudrt, Toudrt Imazighen |
a guest
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... I do not agree with you! each citizen has its rights, and why not to pick up ONE incident? knowing that ALL europeen consulates+canada mistreat moroccans, sometimes even racist insults or behaviour… and yes our gov should take measures to protect and provide its citizen from being insulted… let's not ignore small incidents because they count…it's called citizenship and pride |
a guest
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Benito If Morocco were to take care of its own people and provide the best conditions to thrive on, none of these horrific stories would have happened to any of its citizens seeking to go visit a country full of arrogant and racist individuals with the exception of some of course. But others were not fortunate enough to experience life outside Morocco. The question I ask myself and all other Moroccans abroad is what do we have to live away from our homeland? Luckily for some us, we have been fortunate to settle in the US and to have pursued the opportunities this "democratic" nation has to offer us. Now does Morocco treat its people humanely when one goes to court or any public or government office? How would you want France to respect individuals whose own country does not respect. I am in no way defending France but just getting down to the facts. Mr. Massiki, this is a well written article and I do admire your pride and courage to defend the helpless Moroccans of the world and I really would like someone to come forward and reveal some of the horror stories which are taking place daily in Morocco. What would you say about that woman who was let to die in a public hospital in Morocco, do we call that human? I guess I leave it up to you to judge. No matter what I do love Morocco and it is and will be always my homeland. Cheers my Moroccan brothers and sisters. JB Wald Knitra |
a guest
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Batbout France issued 87% of visa to Moroccan applicants. That is huge in comparison with the US. Let's not pick and chose couple of incidents to generalize. The woman with the cancer may god bless her soul, her folks did not contact the consulate again when they had to, If I have a choice between who to believe, I would believe the French. |
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