RABAT — Thousands of migrants living in Morocco, including hundreds of refugees who fled wars in Africa, face a bleak dilemma — to settle in this transit country with scant opportunities or brave the perilous journey to Europe.
“We do not know what to expect in the future,” says Blessing, a 13-year-old Congolese girl, at a refugee centre in Rabat.
Morocco was hosting up to 25,000 sub-Saharan migrants at the end of last year, the vast majority of whom at least initially were hoping to make it to Spain, nongovernmental organisations say. Gradually, however, the country is turning into a permanent home for these immigrants.
Among them are about 900 refugees, mostly Ivorians and Congolese who have fled wars back home, more than half of them women and children.
Refugee status granted by the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR gives them hope of rebuilding their lives.
But despite Morocco being the first Arab country to ratify the Geneva Convention in 1956, their situation there is “fragile and ambiguous” in the absence of an adequate legal framework, the UNHCR’s representative, Marc Fawe, said on the occasion of International Refugee Day.
Without a residency permit “they are merely tolerated and cannot sign a rental or work contract”, he said. Despite these hurdles, “Morocco is beginning to be treated as a final destination and not just a transit country”, Mr Fawe said.
“The situation is better than in Mali, where I first tried to settle,” said Ronaldo, 16, who left Cote d’Ivoire two years ago.
“We tried Cameroon and then Benin, but had no success,” said Blessing. “In Mauritania we stayed for a bit, but it’s not the same as here.”
At the gates of a Europe in crisis, Morocco at least offers the migrants stability, and there are some organisations to support them, such as the East-West Foundation, which receives about 800 visitors annually.
With the support of half a dozen local and international groups, various assistance programmes have emerged, notably for schooling. After taking courses in Darija, or Moroccan Arabic, the children have a chance of being integrated in public schools, as was Blessing’s younger sister — she came “first in her class”.
“This is a real success. In the past three years, 150 children have been integrated in all,” East West Foundation president Yasmina Filali said.
But while there have been successes, there are still real difficulties. “Some are in very precarious situations. Only when they have been able to meet their basic needs can they concentrate on other things,” such as work, said Anna Prieur, a French volunteer with the UNHCR.
However, it is impossible for them to find work outside the informal sector, and sometimes the only means of subsistence is the modest aid provided by the UNHCR, which is reserved for the most vulnerable.
The UN agency says the kingdom “can do more”, especially by offering the refugees legal status, which would let them look for regular work and protect them from predatory landlords.
Attending a “budget management workshop” organised by Ms Prieur, Ronaldo has mixed feelings about his stay in Morocco, where he says he has experienced “discrimination” as well as an overbearing sense of loneliness. “I came alone, I live alone, I’m always alone, even though I have found friends among the refugees,” he said.
Trained in hotel management, Ronaldo said he regarded his life as being outside Africa. “I believe this is just the first step.”
Sapa-AFP
