Fabounab

On this day (March 2 1933) The film King Kong premiered

2012-03-02T18:23:00.000Z

King Kong opened at the 6,200-seat Radio City Music Hall in New York City and the 3,700-seat RKO Roxy across the street on Thursday, March 2, 1933. The film was preceded by a stage show called Jungle Rhythms. Crowds lined up around the block on opening day, tickets were priced at $.35 to $.75, and, in its first four days, every one of its ten-shows-a-day were sold out — setting an all-time attendance record for an indoor event. Over the four day period, the film grossed $89,931. The film had its official world premiere on March 23, 1933 at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood. The 'big head bust' was placed in the theater's forecourt and a seventeen-act show preceded the film with The Dance of the Sacred Ape performed by a troupe of African American dancers the highpoint. Kong cast and crew attended and Wray thought her on-screen screams distracting and excessive. The film opened nationwide on April 10, 1933, and worldwide on Easter Day in London, England.

Morocco tourism grows slightly despite world economic downturn

2012-03-02T16:58:00.002Z

The number of tourists visiting Morocco was up by one percent last year, at just over 9.34 million, despite the world economic downturn, tourism official Kamal Bensouda said Thursday.

Tourist income was also up, by four percent, at 59 billion dirhams (5.36 billion euros, $7.12 billion), he told MAP news agency.

The steady results came despite recession in Europe, a continent which accounts for 80 percent of Morocco's tourists, Bensouda said.

Most visitors are French, Spanish, or Moroccans living abroad, he added. Morocco was the only North African country which did not see a drop in tourism last year, when Arab Spring revolutions swept away the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

Agadir, one of the preferred destinations for tour operators, illustrates 2011's drop in tourist activity.
Last January, Agadir registered in its classified hotels a total of 48,367 arrivals and 266,633 overnight stays, a drop of 19.93 percent and 23.36 percent respectively compared to the same period in 2011.

Meanwhile, the new Moroccan Minister of Tourism Lahcen Haddad believes that 2011 was still a good year. Despite the local and regional events, Moroccan tourism has had good achievements, he said.

"The sector, which contributes about 9 percent of the GDP, achieved satisfactory results in 2011 despite a difficult world and declining travel demand due to the economic crisis which hit the main tourist source markets of Morocco,'' said the Moroccan minister, whose remarks were reported by the MAP news agency.

@Middle-east-online.com

Morocco to import 1 mln T of s.wheat by end-May

2012-03-02T16:52:00.003Z

Morocco will import between 1 million and 1.1 million tonnes of soft wheat during the March-May period of this year after the government decided to suspend import duties on the commodity for two months, the finance ministry said on Friday.

Finance and Economy Minister Nizar Baraka told a parliamentary committee that 125,000 tonnes of locally-produced soft wheat from last year's harvest remains to be collected by end-May, a statement posted on the ministry's website said.

The North African country is bracing for a drop in this year's cereals harvest, as well as other crops, after a shortage in rainfalls and a prolonged cold spell hurt farming, the head of the agriculture industry said earlier on Friday.

@Reuters.com

Facebook Timeline Arrives for Business: Prepare Your Page

2012-03-02T16:36:00.000Z

Facebook today introduced a major revamp for business pages that gives you more control over the look and feel of your company's page. The new page layout helps you interact more easily with your Facebook fans, enabling enhanced graphics, the capability to feature posts, and private messages with fans.

Most Facebook users are familiar with the new Timeline layout. Not only does it organize status updates onto a timeline, making it easy to call up a Facebook user’s posts by month and year, but the Facebook experience becomes much more visual, with larger and more clearly displayed photos. Here are the key features, and how to get your company ready for the Facebook-wide rollout on March 30.

Upload New Cover and Profile Photos

To get started with the new design, upload a cover photo to showcase your brand. If you have the budget, hire a graphic designer to do something special. Facebook states that the ideal size is 851 by 315 pixels if you want to give it a go yourself. Just click on "Add a Cover" near the top-left of your Facebook page, and choose "Upload Photo". The profile photo is the smaller image that appears beside all of your status updates, as a box within your larger cover photo. This is an ideal spot for a logo (as in Red Bull's example, above), about 180 by 180 pixels. If you already have a page, your existing profile picture will be here, but you may want to move or resize it. To change the profile photo, hover your mouse over it and click "Edit Profile Picture".

View the New 'About' Section

The section that used to be buried in the "Info" tab on your company page is now front and center along its very top, so consider rewriting it to show it off. Keep it short and to the point; think mission statement rather than an entire company biography.

Control How Posts Are Displayed

With Timeline, you can pin a post to the top of your Facebook page for up to seven days to highlight popular or relevant content. You can also change post dates, which will help you bump up posts that you want to keep at the top of the page.
You can "star" a post to feature it more prominently, increasing the size of the post to take up the full width of your Facebook page. This means you want to pay a little more attention to photos that may end up on your Facebook page; you'll want to take them at a minimum width of 851 pixels so they can be featured as part of a "starred" post without pixelating.

Add Company Milestones

You'll be able to create company milestones on your Timeline, which gives you an easy way to translate company history to Facebook. You can also feature events like new store openings and product launches.

Control Posts on the Activity Log

Facebook's new Activity Log will let you manage your posts. This administration panel lets you hide and reveal posts, "star" posts to feature them, and change post dates.

Admin Panel Shows Stats and Activity

The new Admin Panel features private messages from Facebook users to your company, which removes complex customer issues and complaints from your public Facebook wall and puts them in your inbox, where they belong.

The Notifications tab keeps your notifications about likes and comments in one place, which will allow most company page admins to turn off the notifications filling up their email inboxes.

Insights is Facebook's own analytics tool, which tells you who's talking about your company page through "Talking About This," and how many people the conversations are reaching through "Reach". While Insights isn't new, its integration with the Admin Panel makes it more accessible.

Track Friend Activity

When people visit your page, they'll be able to see their friends' interactions with your company near the top of your company page. This gives a more personal feel to those visiting your page, and builds trust in your brand. The only downside is that a negative mention from a visitor's Facebook friend is also likely to show up here.

When to Take Action

All business pages will be upgraded to the new layout automatically on March 30. To see what your new page will look like, click the preview button at the top of your current company page. If you like it already, you can publish your page right now rather than waiting a month.

What I Would Change

Companies should be most concerned about the Friend Activity. While it's a great feature if everyone is speaking in glowing terms about your company, negative comments have a way of bubbling to the top faster than positive ones. If a company is concerned about reputation management, it should have the option of turning off Friend Activity. And if it were up to me, I'd roll in the Activity Log to the Admin Panel rather than having two separate consoles to manage my page. Other than these minor gripes, the new changes are definitely an improvement to the company and user experience on Facebook.

Facebook Also Updates Advertising and Offers

Meanwhile, Facebook announced it will feature Premium Ads and Sponsored Stories on the mobile newsfeed as well as the Facebook logout page. They will also be introducing Offers, a free way for businesses to share promotions directly from their company Facebook Page.

@pcworld.com

Low turnout for Morocco anniversary protests

2012-02-19T19:11:00.001Z

A few thousand people gathered Sunday in Morocco's cities to mark the one year anniversary of the North African kingdom's local version of the Arab Spring uprisings.

The low turnout was in sharp contrast to the tens of thousands that once flocked to the February 20th movement's banner early last year. About 1,000 people turned out for a sit-in at Casablanca's main square. In the capital Rabat, at least 1,500 marched through the center of town chanting slogans and singing songs.
The demonstrations last year prompted the king to amend the constitution to curtail is powers and hold early elections, which were won by an Islamist opposition party promising reforms. Since then, demonstrations petered out.

Activists say many of their demands remain unmet, including fighting corruption, releasing prisoners of conscience and decreasing the absolute power of the king. While activists in Casablanca acknowledged that their numbers were down, they pointed out that a protest such as this, filled with young people, would have been unthinkable a year ago.

"It is not bad to be able to do a sit-in for two days and discuss issues in the open air," said Larbi Menouzi, who has attended nearly every one of the weekly demonstrations held in Casablanca for the past year.
The main square of Morocco's largest city, flanked by the central bank, city hall and main post office, was filled with people enjoying a sunny winter's day, along with the knot of protesters, a few dozen of whom spent the night on the square in tents.

Banners above their tents demanded the new parliament be dissolved, those stealing public money be prosecuted and all prisoners of conscience be released.
Activists say the sit-in will continue until their demands are met, a conscious echo of the sit-in at Cairo's Tahrir Square at the center of Egypt's uprising.

"Before people were too scared to speak and now they do. The February 20 movement has been a catalyst and people are now mobilized everywhere," Souad Guennon said.
Placards and photos around the square testified to the breadth of movements across the country, describing striking villagers at a distant silver mine, residents bulldozed out of informal housing and clashes with police in a mountain town.

Omar Radi, an activist with movement, took heart in the turnout in Rabat, which was higher than it had been in months, though still far below the large demonstrations that characterized its early days.
"This is the biggest demonstration in Rabat in a while, which gives us hope," he said activists chanted around him. "Like all movements, this has had its ups and downs, but the spirit of the February 20th is all over the country."

The New York-based Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, condemned the trial of activists of the February 20th movement arrested for advocating a boycott of the Nov. 25 elections.

@AP

Morocco bans Spanish paper

2012-02-19T19:06:00.000Z

Morocco has banned the distribution of Thursday's edition of Spain's influential El Pais, as a cartoon published by the newspaper allegedly tarnished King Mohammed VI's name, an official said.
“The decision to ban (the paper) was made on the basis of article 29 of the press code” that protects the monarch, the senior communication ministry official told AFP on Saturday.

“The caricature contains a deliberate intention to smear the (king's) image to harm the king personally,” he added.

The cartoon, which was picked up by a Moroccan website, accompanied an article by Spanish journalist Ignacio Cembrero, who knows Morocco well.
Contacted by AFP, Cembrero said the Moroccan reaction surprised him as the small cartoon was “friendly and rather likeable”.

It seemed to be the first time that a foreign publication was banned for the stated reasons since the moderate Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) came to power in Morocco in January, he added.
So far Morocco has only banned weeklies that carried images of the Prophet Mohammed, or of God, which is forbidden under Muslim tradition.

Earlier this month French weekly Le Nouvel Observateur fell into that category after printing an image of God.

And last month the magazine was banned when a cover story on the Arab world included the supposed face of the Prophet Mohammed.

Morocco also banned French weekly l'Express in January for publishing a 95-page dossier on Islam including a face meant to represent Mohammed's.

Cembrero was, along with El Pais's director, the last foreign journalist to interview the monarch in January 2005.

Early this week, Rabat's private economics school EGE cancelled a conference on Spanish-Moroccan relations where Cembrero was to speak on February 29, but did not give a reason.
Cembrero was in Rabat in late January during a visit to the country by Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

He wrote a book on sometimes tense relations between Madrid and Rabat, “Vecinos alejados”, (Distant Neighbours) in 2006 and has attended public meetings in Morocco that also focussed on the latest upheaval in Arab countries.

@AFP

Moroccan Protests One Year On

2012-02-16T14:10:00.002Z

Protesters are set to mark the first anniversary of Morocco’s February 20 pro-democracy movement with demonstrations and strikes across the country starting Sunday. But activists say that, rather than a celebration, the protests will be a reminder to the regime that they will not give up before their calls for reform are answered.

“We are advocating for a democratic constitution that will give real power to a government that currently still doesn’t have enough weight to respond to our demands,” said Youness Bensaid, 23, a Casablanca-based activist.

When the unrest that swept the Arab world after the fall of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia on Jan. 14, 2011, reached Morocco, King Mohammed VI responded quickly, introducing a new constitution to grant greater freedoms with a limited redistribution of power. Protesters scoffed, calling the changes “cosmetic.”
A year later and with a new government in office, Morocco still faces huge economic and social challenges. There are frequent cases of self-immolation such as the one that set off the revolution in Tunisia. In the northeastern city of Taza, protesters demanding relief from soaring prices clashed with the authorities in recent days.

Nabila Mounib, secretary general of the Unified Socialist Party — which is not part of the new government after boycotting elections last year but which supports the protest movement — went to Taza to evaluate the situation after about 150 people, including police officers, were hurt. She said there was an urgent need for the government to improve the lives of ordinary citizens and to give the young hope for a better future.
“Morocco’s stability is threatened,” Mrs. Mounib said. “It is absolutely necessary to take emergency measures at all levels. We need a real reform of all institutions. The country does not have any self-respecting economic policy and has a failing education system. The constitution needs to be reformed and meet international democratic standards.”

Analysts say the protest movement failed to galvanize large sectors of society because, after the initial euphoria inspired by the Tunisian revolution, people were deterred by the chaos in Libya, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain and by difficulties in Egypt. The Moroccans, they say, are anxious to preserve stability.
Still, while the uprising of Morocco’s youth brought concessions that unions and human rights groups had failed to obtain in the previous decade, observers say that the real victory is a widespread awakening of political awareness.

“For the first time there is clearly a counterbalance to power — the people,” said Abdellah Tourabi, a researcher at the Paris Institute of Political Studies who specializes in Islamic movements in Morocco. “The ‘street’ has become a true political player.”

On Feb. 20, 2011, Mr. Bensaid, a finance student at the Hassan II University in Casablanca, joined the thousands who took to the streets to protest the same problems that cripple many Arab countries: social injustice, corruption and a lack of personal freedoms.

A year later, he feels frustrated, he says. “The communication stunt was successful,” said Mr. Bensaid, referring to the new constitution. “Everything that followed was a farce. The king appointed an undemocratic commission, with members committed to the conservative nature of the absolute monarchy.”
Observers say that the key difference between Morocco’s uprising and those in other Arab Spring countries is that the population, deeply attached to its 1,200-year-old tradition of monarchy, never called for regime change.

Still, Sunday protests have become a weekly ritual. Except for the occasional police crackdown, most are peaceful, well organized and almost celebratory, with cheerful marchers waving placards and chanting the ills of their country.

Last July, a referendum on the new constitution won 98.5 percent of the vote. Elections followed on Nov. 25, allowing the moderate Islamists of the Justice and Development Party to form a new government under Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane.

“The government is taking the necessary measures to implement the new constitution and to consolidate the rule of law in our country,” the government spokesman, Mustapha Khalfi, said recently, insisting that major economic reforms would be pushed through.

“The first question is whether there is going to be a shift in the balance of power between the king and political institutions,” said Marina Ottaway, a senior associate at the Middle East Program of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.

“It is not clear to me yet how forceful the Benkirane government will be,” she said. “The king has taken an exceptional position in the sense that he has decided to respond to unrest with reforms rather than repression, but he is no different from other Arab rulers in the sense that he is determined to keep his power intact. He is just going about it in a smarter way.”

Meanwhile, the new justice minister, Mustapha Ramid, has started cracking down on corruption. But protesters say this is not enough and fear that the government won’t effect radical reforms.

Ms. Ottaway said: “With all the problems of the Arab world, Morocco does not seem to be a particularly worrisome place. I do not expect an upheaval now. The question is whether there will be sufficient gradual reform to prevent an upheaval later on. It depends on the king, but also on the new government.”

@nytimes.com

The European Parliament has given its approval to the EU-Morocco trade deal

2012-02-16T14:00:00.003Z

MEPs have given its green light to liberalise EU-Morocco trade in agricultural and fisheries products, while adopting a resolution highlighting a number of concerns. A majority of MEPs say the agreement will help alleviate economic, migratory and security problems following the Arab Spring.

The trade deal EU-Morocco was approved in the plenary session by MEPs in order to allow an increase in certain quotas for zero or low duty imports and represents a step towards a more extensive free trade agreement. The deal was previously approved by MEPs in the International Trade Committee. The agreement will immediately lift 55% of tariffs on Morocco agricultural and fisheries products (rising from 33%) and 70% of tariffs on EU agricultural and fisheries products within 10 years (rising from 1%). It also includes safeguards, for example by allowing only moderate increases to quotas of certain products, such as tomatoes, strawberries, cucumbers and garlic. The deal also provides for seasonal quotas to counter distortion of the EU market and says Moroccan imports should meet European sanitary standards.

@Euroalert.net

A Moroccan circus is offering some of the country's poorest children a brighter future

2012-02-15T18:12:00.002Z

A Moroccan circus is offering some of the country's poorest children a brighter future. Cirque Shems'y, the circus of my sun, sits on the edge of one of Morocco's poorest slums in Salé, on the northwest coast. Each year, hundreds of children and teenagers come to the circus to try out as performers, desperate to find a new future for themselves.

Only a handful of the young hopefuls can be taken on: those who make the grade are pushed to their physical limits and constantly challenged to prove themselves. Cirque Shems'y is the first circus of its kind in Morocco and its director, Alain, has a lot to prove: he is determined to make the circus a commercial success so that it might deliver a working future for its young performers.

Witness joins the circus on its first national tour, travelling by train and bus to Agadir to set up the tent and perform in front of a demanding audience.

For this first tour, Cirque Shems'y is opening with a classic Moroccan folk tale with a Romeo and Juliet theme. For the young performers - 14-year-old Hajar, who specialises in aerial work, her co-lead Abd'Ali and the coach Imed - this first experience of performing for the public is nerve-wracking. And for the audience, many of whom have never been to the circus before, this authentic Moroccan spectacle is an eye-opener. In Salé, across the river from Morocco's capital, Rabat, jobs are scarce and many children do not go to school. For a lot of young people there, life offers few opportunities - and many see little point in getting an education.

When the circus first began 10 years ago it was a social project for children on the streets and in the slums of Salé. As it grew, the talents of many of the young people involved came to the fore and in an international circus competition 10 out of the 12 prizes were won by young Moroccans from Cirque Shems'y. The organisers saw that the circus could actually become a professional career for some of the young people involved and set about transforming it from a social organisation to a professional circus school - offering an internationally recognised vocational diploma. Now entrance to the school is through a rigorous audition process, and of the hundreds of young people who come to try out from across Morocco, only a handful will make the grade.

Fewer still will complete the rigorous training. In 2009 it reopened, complete with a full size circus tent and a rotating team of circus professionals from around the world who come to teach specialised skills. With the new accreditation comes a new pressure - Cirque Shems'y must reach international standards and create an audience for their work in Morocco and beyond. The young performers are training to professional level but if there are no work opportunities for them this training is wasted.

So the circus has to build a circus culture in Morocco as well as training the young people who are part of it. It is not an easy task: Morocco does not have a circus tradition. Street acrobats and performers are common but contemporary circus - as an artistic and spectacular piece of theatre - is a completely new concept.

Amidst endemic poverty, strict social codes and lack of opportunities, the circus tent symbolises freedom, creativity, excitement and possibility. Girls and boys mix freely, the body becomes an instrument for self-expression and distant shores are visible on the horizon. For many of these young people, the circus is literally their only chance for a better future. They must succeed because otherwise they will have nothing. Can the circus enable them to become confident, expressive young people able to articulate their ideas and experiences through art? And, most importantly, can it deliver them a future?

@aljazeera.com

Moroccan authorities deployed a Spanish filming porn movies in Morocco

2012-02-15T13:49:00.003Z

On 8th February, the owner of a Spanish porn website and porn film photographer, arrived in Tangier, coming from Madrid, before he makes a visit to Tetouan, Martyl and Madyak, last Friday 10th February, to practice his better job, according to him.

He is a person named “Ignacio Allende Fernández” known by his nickname “Torbe” and “Nacho”, and he films sex relations with hidden camera, and publishes them later on his porn website, where the visitors pay to watch them.

The visit of Spanish porn producer to Morocco is not the first of its kind, but he has already visited Marrakech, Tangier, Tetouan, and published after then through his website all his sexual adventures, that are characterized by a kind of racism and revenge from Moroccan girls, and “Torbe” says in his website that “ it’s easy to find a Moroccan girl with whom to pass a night with only between 40 to 60 Euros, and if you are a fool they will ask from you 300 Euros”.

The Spanish porn site, which is from “Bethkaya” area of the Basque region, contains thousands of pornography tapes, visited by about 160 thousand visitors per day, some of which are contained within the link “hidden camera” where he filmed all scenes secretly filmed without the attention of the girl accompanied.
The reasons and circumstances of the recent visit of the porn producer to Tangier and Tetouan are not known, and if it is related to filming porn movies with hidden camera as he is used to do not only in Morocco but in other Latin countries.

And what’s strange is that although the Moroccan authorities know the identity of the porn website owner and the purpose behind his visit to Morocco, but nothing had been done to prevent that. And this, of course, does not honor Moroccans at all, and it hurts the image of Moroccan woman in front of the world and this producer is an enemy who’s trying to offend the Moroccan reputation.

And the deportation of the porn producer come after the Moroccan newspaper “Almasae” published in Arabic, have written about the subject yesterday Tuesday 14 February, and monitor his movements, as if the authorities didn’t know about him and his intentions.

The Spanish producer said in a statement on his Twitter account that he “slept with a Moroccan girl before going to bed,” and in another statement he said that he “gave the receptionist of the hotel 30 dhs to allow the girls go up to his room..”

@marocpress.com

Adele's '21' wins album of the year at Grammys: Singer's 'Rolling in the Deep' nabs record of the year

2012-02-14T21:35:00.003Z

The Vegas oddsmakers were right: Adele was a sure thing at this year's Grammy Awards. Further cementing her nascent superstardom, the English singer swept all six of the categories she was nominated in at Sunday's Grammy Awards ceremonies, collecting album of the year honors for "21" and record and song of the year trophies for "Rolling in the Deep.

" Adele, who was named best new artist in 2009, is only the second artist in history to take all four major Grammy categories. Christopher Cross attained the feat in 1981 with a four-award sweep. The singer, nee Adele Adkins, broke into tears as she accepted the album of the year award. "This is ridiculous," she said, and made a point of thanking "every radio programmer and broadcaster" who helped put "Rolling in the Deep" and other tunes from "21" over the top. This year's surprising best new artist winner was Bon Iver. The folk-skewed Wisconsin-bred singer-songwriter, ne Justin Vernon, triumphed in a field that included the ultra-hot rap talent Nicki Minaj.

Vernon had publicly declined to perform at the Grammy ceremony. Adele's "21" also won as best pop vocal album, "Someone Like You" captured best pop solo performance and the clip for "Rolling in the Deep" took best short-form video. Adele's six trophies equaled Beyonce's record one-night tally for a female performer, set in 2010. Paul Epworth, who co-wrote "Rolling in the Deep" and produced that hit, was named non-classical producer of the year, and shared song and album of the year honors.

The night's other big winners, perennial Recording Academy favorites Foo Fighters, dominated the rock categories with five victories: best rock album (for "Wasting Light") best hard rock/metal performance (for "White Limo"), best rock performance and best rock song (for "Walk") and best longform video (for "Foo Fighters: Back and Forth," directed and co-produced by James Moll). The band performed twice on the Grammycast. "We made this record in my garage with some microphones and a tape machine," said Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl. "It shows that the human element of making music is most important." As he left the stage Grohl shouted "Long live rock 'n' roll!" Kanye West -- this year's top nominee with seven nods -- once again had to satisfy himself with rap wins.

West captured four awards to add to his 14 previous wins, for best rap/sung collaboration and best rap song (for "All of the Lights"), best rap performance (for "Otis," shared with Jay-Z) and best rap album ("My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy"). Few Grammy triumphs have felt quite as inevitable as Adele's. The 22-year-old singer served as the music industry's savior last year with her sophomore album "21." The top-selling collection has sold 6.38 million copies domestically to date, and remains No. 1 on the U.S. album chart after nearly a year in release.

With one more week atop the chart, "21" will tie Whitney Houston's 20-week SoundScan-era record for longevity at the pinnacle, set in 1992-93 with the soundtrack for "The Bodyguard." With stylistic nods to Brit singers past, most notably Dusty Springfield and Amy Winehouse, "21" was lofted by three smash singles, "Rolling in the Deep," "Someone Like You" and "Set Fire to the Rain." The rich-voiced singer's seemingly universal appeal tagged her as an awards season shoo-in. The vocalist was the headline attraction for this year's Grammycast, emerging from months off the stage after throat surgery for a hemorrhaged vocal cord forced cancellation of a sold-out U.S. tour. Asked backstage how she handled the jolt of having to undergo surgery, Adele was sanguine about the experience. " "It's actually been really peaceful. Being silent in such a noisy world, it was sort of a blessing in disguise," she said. "I've actually never been happier."

By an accident of fate, Adele's ascension on Sunday seemed a passing of the torch after the death Saturday of Houston, who rose to fame in the '80s with a similar brand of soulful, highly accessible pop. Houston's memory loomed both on and off the Grammy stage on Sunday. Jennifer Hudson paid tribute with a televised performance of "I Will Always Love You," Houston's No. 1 hit from the 1992 soundtrack of "The Bodyguard." Hudson ended the performance by ad libbing, "Whitney, we loved you." Stevie Wonder said from the stage, "I just want to say to Whitney up in Heaven, we all love you, Whitney Houston." Winners and performers offered their thoughts about the singer backstage.

Vocalist-songwriter Melanie Fiona, who shared two R&B awards with Cee Lo Green for "Fool For You," said, "Whitney is the first voice and memory I have of music... I would not be up here as an artist, a nominee and a winner without her influence on my life ... I feel so proud to be able say that she was such a huge influence on me." Bonnie Raitt told reporters, "I'm sure you're still in shock, too...It's stunning, her vocal range and power." Houston's impact extended beyond the pop discipline: Joyce DiDonato, winner for best classical vocal solo, said, "She was larger than life, and the summation of good singing for me. I have a lot of opera friends, and we were all heartbroken to hear the news.

" The diminutive, angularly coiffed electronic/dance artist Skrillex broke through with three wins, taking best dance/electronica album (for "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprights"), best dance recording (for the album's title track) and best remixed recording (for Benny Benassi's "Cinema"). Taylor Swift added two Grammy awards to her career total of four, winning best country solo performance and best country song for "Mean." Americana duo the Civil Wars' "Barton Hollow" won as both best folk album, while its title track won best country duo/group performance. As ever, some sentimental favorites prevailed. Paul McCartney, who was honored as MusiCares' person of the year on Friday and performed during the telecast, collected his 15th Grammy - a best historical album honor, for last year's reissue of his 1973 album "Band On the Run."

A mere 49 years after receiving his first Grammy -- record of the year, for "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" -- Tony Bennett won Nos. 15 and 16, for best traditional pop album (for "Duets II," his all-star No. 1 album) and. best pop performance by a duo or group, for "Body and Soul," his track with Amy Winehouse. The late singer's parents joined him onstage at the afternoon ceremony. "We shouldn't be here -- our darling daughter should be here," said Mitch Winehouse. "These are the cards we're dealt." Alison Krauss, the most rewarded female performer in Grammy history, received her 27th trophy: "Paper Airplane," her latest release with her group Union Station, was named best bluegrass album. In the music for visual media categories, "Boardwalk Empire Volume 1," the soundtrack for the HBO series - collected best compilation soundtrack for Stewart Lerman, Randall Poster and Kevin Weaver. Alexander Desplat won best score soundtrack for Oscar winner "The King's Speech." Alan Menken and Glenn Slater received the prize for best song written for visual media, for "I See the Light" from Disney's "Tangled." Tony winner "The Book of Mormon," written by Robert Lopez, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, was named best musical theater album. Apart from Adele's return to perform "Rolling in the Deep" -- which drew one of the longest ovations in recent Grammy history --the kudocast's chief draws were distinctly old-school.

McCartney performed "My Valentine," a track from his new standards collection, with Diana Krall and Joe Walsh, and a show-closing "Abbey Road" medley; the reunited Beach Boys played their 1966 hit "Good Vibrations" with Foster the People and Maroon 5; and Glen Campbell, who is retiring from performing after the onset of Alzheimer's disease, sang "Rhinestone Cowboy" to climax a tribute segment. Alicia Keys and Raitt paid tribute to the R&B diva Etta James, who died in January at 73, with a duet on "A Sunday Kind of Love." Complete list of winners: 1. Record of the Year Rolling in the Deep, Adele 2. Album of the Year 21, Adele 3. Song of the Year Rolling in the Deep, Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth (Adele) 4. Best New Artist Bon Iver 5. Best Pop Solo Performance Someone Like You, Adele 6. Best Pop Duo/Group Performance Body And Soul, Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse

7. Best Pop Instrumental Album The Road From Memphis, Booker T. Jones 8. Best Pop Vocal Album 21, Adele 9. Best Dance Recording Scary Monsters And Nice Sprites, Skrillex 10. Best Dance/Electronica Album Scary Monsters And Nice Sprites, Skrillex 11. Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album Duets II, Tony Bennett & Various Artists 12. Best Rock Performance Walk, Foo Fighters 13. Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance White Limo, Foo Fighters 14. Best Rock Song Walk, Foo Fighters, songwriters (Foo Fighters) *** 15. Best Rock Album Wasting Light, Foo Fighters 16. Best Alternative Music Album Bon Iver, Bon Iver 17. Best Traditional R&B Performance Fool For You, Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona 18. Best R&B Performance Is This Love, Corinne Bailey Rae 19. Best R&B Song Fool For You, Cee Lo Green, Melanie Hallim, Jack Splash, songwriters (Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona) 20. Best R&B Album F.A.M.E., Chris Brown 21. Best Rap Performance Otis, Jay-Z and Kanye West 22. Best Rap/Sung Collaboration All Of The Lights, Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie 23. Best Rap Song All Of The Lights, Jeff Bhasker, Stacy Ferguson, Malik Jones, Warren Trotter & Kanye West, songwriters (Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie) 24. Best Rap Album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West 25. Best Country Solo Performance Mean, Taylor Swift 26. Best Country Duo/Group Performance Barton Hollow, The Civil Wars 27. Best Country Song Mean, Taylor Swift, songwriter (Taylor Swift) 28. Best Country Album Own the Night, Lady Antebellum 29. Best New Age Album What's It All About, Pat Metheny 30. Best Improvised Jazz Solo 500 Miles High, Chick Corea, soloist 31. Best Jazz Vocal Album The Mosaic Project, Terri Lyne Carrington & Various Artists 32. Best Jazz Instrumental Album Forever, Corea, Clarke & White 33. Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album The Good Feeling, Christian McBride Big Band 34. Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance Jesus, Le'Andria Johnson 35. Best Gospel Song Hello Fear, Kirk Franklin, songwriter (Kirk Franklin) 36. Best Contemporary Christian Music Song Blessings, Laura Story, songwriter (Laura Story) 37. Best Gospel Album Hello Fear, Kirk Franklin 38. Best Contemporary Christian Music Album And If Our God Is For Us..., Chris Tomlin 39. Best Latin Pop, Rock, Or Urban Album Drama Y Luz, Maná 40. Best Regional Mexican Or Tejano Album Bicentenario, Pepe Aguilar 41. Best Banda Or Norteño Album Los Tigres Del Norte And Friends, Los Tigres Del Norte 42. Best Tropical Latin Album The Last Mambo, Cachao 43. Best Americana Album Ramble At The Ryman, Levon Helm 44. Best Bluegrass Album Paper Airplane, Alison Krauss & Union Station 45. Best Blues Album Revelator, Tedeschi Trucks Band 46. Best Folk Album Barton Hollow, The Civil Wars 47. Best Regional Roots Music Album Rebirth Of New Orleans, Rebirth Brass Band 48. Best Reggae Album Revelation Pt 1: The Root Of Life, Stephen Marley

49. Best World Music Album Tassili, Tinariwen 50. Best Children's Album All About Bullies... Big And Small (Various Artists), Jim Cravero, Gloria Domina, Kevin Mackie, Steve Pullara & Patrick Robinson, producers 51. Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Story Telling) If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won't), Betty White 52. Best Comedy Album Hilarious, Louis C.K. 53. Best Musical Theater Album The Book Of Mormon 54. Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media Boardwalk Empire: Volume 1, (Various Artists) Stewart Lerman, Randall Poster & Kevin Weaver, producers 55. Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media The King's Speech, Alexandre Desplat 56. Best Song Written For Visual Media I See The Light (From Tangled), Alan Menken & Glenn Slater, songwriters (Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi) 57. Best Instrumental Composition Life In Eleven, Béla Fleck & Howard Levy, composers (Béla Fleck & The Flecktones) 58. Best Instrumental Arrangement Rhapsody In Blue, Gordon Goodwin, arranger (Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band)

59. Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me), Jorge Calandrelli, arranger (Tony Bennett & Queen Latifah) 60. Best Recording Package Scenes From The Suburbs, Caroline Robert, art director (Arcade Fire) 61. Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package The Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story 62. Best Album Notes Hear Me Howling!: Blues, Ballads & Beyond As Recorded By The San Francisco Bay By Chris Strachwitz In The 1960s 63. Best Historical Album Band On The Run (Paul McCartney Archive Collection - Deluxe Edition)\ 64. Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical Paper Airplane, Neal Cappellino & Mike Shipley, engineers; Brad Blackwood, mastering engineer (Alison Krauss & Union Station) 65. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical Paul Epworth 66. Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical Cinema (Skrillex Remix), Sonny Moore, remixer (Benny Benassi) 67. Best Surround Sound Album Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs (Super Deluxe Edition) 68. Best Engineered Album, Classical Aldridge: Elmer Gantry 69. Producer Of The Year, Classical Judith Sherman

70. Best Orchestral Performance Brahms: Symphony No. 4 Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic) 71. Best Opera Recording Adams: Doctor Atomic Alan Gilbert, conductor; Meredith Arwady, Sasha Cooke, Richard Paul Fink, Gerald Finley, Thomas Glenn & Eric Owens; Jay David Saks, producer (Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; Metropolitan Opera Chorus) 72. Best Choral Performance Light & Gold Eric Whitacre, conductor (Christopher Glynn & Hila Plitmann; The King's Singers, Laudibus, Pavão Quartet & The Eric Whitacre Singers) 73. Best Small Ensemble Performance Mackey: Lonely Motel - Music From Slide Rinde Eckert & Steven Mackey; Eighth Blackbird 74. Best Classical Instrumental Solo Schwantner: Concerto For Percussion & Orchestra Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor; Christopher Lamb (Nashville Symphony)

75. Best Classical Vocal Solo Diva Divo Joyce DiDonato (Kazushi Ono; Orchestre De L'Opéra National De Lyon; Choeur De L'Opéra National De Lyon) 76. Best Contemporary Classical Composition Aldridge, Robert: Elmer Gantry Robert Aldridge & Herschel Garfein 77. Best Short Form Music Video Rolling In The Deep Adele Sam Brown, video director; Hannah Chandler, video producer 78. Best Long Form Music Video Foo Fighters: Back And Forth Foo Fighters James Moll, video director; James Moll & Nigel Sinclair, video producers Winners by number: Adele - 6 Foo Fighters - 5 Kanye West - 4 Paul Epworth - 3 Skrillex - 3 Tony Bennett - 2 The Civil Wars - 2 Chick Corea - 2 Kirk Franklin - 2 Cee Lo Green - 2 Taylor Swift - 2 Related:Grammy notes

@chicagotribune.com

Moroccan gets 3 years for anti-king video

2012-02-14T21:19:00.001Z

A Moroccan court has convicted a student of "violating the sacred values" of the kingdom and sentenced him to three years in prison after a video posted online showed him criticizing the king, the state news agency reported Tuesday.

Abdelsamad Haydour, from Taza, a mountain town 187 miles (300 kilometers) east of the capital that has been a hot spot for violent protests, accused King Mohammed VI of oppressing his people in the 4-minute clip, and also called the monarch a dog, a dictator and a murder.

The monarchy has tolerated widespread protests over the last year, but the latest incident shows that there are still limits to the kind of criticisms permitted. The video, available on YouTube.com, showed the 24-year-old talking with a friend outside on the street, surrounded by a group of young people. At one point, Haydour points to the camera while making his statements.

"For years they have just been educating us to be consumers and buy the products of the colonizers and their representatives in Rabat," the Moroccan capital, said Haydour, who also was fined $1,250.
Morocco's king once was constitutionally considered sacred but under amendments passed in 2011 in response to pro-democracy protests, the wording has been toned down: His person is now described as "inviolable and respect is due him."

On Feb. 7, another young Moroccan also was charged with attacking "sacred values" when he posted on Facebook mocking cartoons of the king. His trial is pending. Taza has been torn by violent clashes between security forces and youths protesting unemployment since Feb. 1, when demonstrators attacked government buildings and burned tires.

Most Moroccan cities witness regular demonstrations by groups of unemployed youths, often university graduates, but in Taza the marches turned into days of battles with riot police. After the riots, police went house to house and arrested dozens of people on charges of destroying public property and vandalism. On Tuesday, 17 men in Taza were convicted of vandalism and sentenced to up to 10 months in prison.

While Morocco's economy has been growing steadily at around 4 percent annually for the past several years, the growth has not been able to provide enough employment to the millions of young people entering the workforce every year. Unemployment is officially 9 percent and rises to at least 30 percent for those under 34 years of age.

Last month, several Moroccans set themselves on fire during protests over unemployment, including one man who died from his burns.

@AP

Whitney Houston Dead at 48

2012-02-13T17:56:00.003Z

Singer Whitney Houston has died at the age of 48. Her publicist confirmed the news on Saturday, Feb. 11. Houston's drug problems were well-known and several sources indicate that she was found submerged in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel where she was a guest and that several sedatives and substances were found in her room.

Houston was married to Bobby Brown from 1992, divorcing him in 2007. They have a daughter, Bobbi Kristina, 18. She was rushed to the hospital twice in the wake of her mother's death, reportedly due to the fact that she was mixing pills and alcohol to cope. How sad. Brown also broke down while performing (he was on tour) upon hearing news of his ex-wife's death.

Her family issued a statement yesterday, which read as follows:

"We're devastated by the loss of our beloved Whitney. This is an unimaginable tragedy and we will miss her terribly. We appreciate the outpouring of love and support from her fans and friends."

@artistdirect.com

Morocco's trailblazing female golfer is going for Olympic gold

2012-02-07T21:24:00.002Z

Morocco's trailblazing female golfer is going for Olympic gold In many ways, Maha Haddioui is the archetypal young professional women's golfer, desperate to make a breakthrough on one of the major tours in Europe or the United States. Educated at an American university, the 22-year-old speaks four languages. Her Facebook page lists has hundreds of friends from all over the world.

A stylist on the course, she sports an elegant line in clothing -- more often than not wearing a polo shirt and pink skirt. But, unlike her peers, Haddioui is a trailblazer in a region of the world that has seen turmoil and political upheaval over the past year, and where women's freedoms are often severely restricted. Hailing from Morocco, she's the first Arab woman to compete in a professional golf tournament.

Her lifetime ambition is to follow in the footsteps of the North African nation's legendary middle-distance track and field athletes and win Olympic gold. Golf will return to the four-yearly sporting showpiece in Brazil in 2016 after an absence of more than a century. "I have always watched the Olympics with my father and it is the biggest sports event worldwide," Haddioui told CNN.

"We have had some great Moroccan athletes like Hicham El Guerrouj that have made the country proud, and my dream is to follow in their footsteps." Fortunately for Haddioui, she was brought up by a liberal family who did not insist on traditional dress code for their young daughter. Able to practice on local courses near their home in Agadir, she quickly showed an aptitude for golf and received support from the country's ministry of sport. She has spent four years on the collegiate golf circuit in the United States, studying at Lynn University in Florida and earning the accolade of top-ranked NCAA Division II women's golfer during that time. When she graduated, the repercussions of the Arab Spring began to be felt in the wider region, and in Morocco there were also demands for democratic change.

The bulk of the country has been ruled by a monarchist dynasty since the 17th century, with King Mohammed VI holding power since 1999. With regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya swept away, Morocco's 48-year-old ruler promised reforms. In November's election he was obliged to choose the prime minister from the largest party, rather than by his own personal choice. He had, in 2004, introduced measures which addressed women's rights. "I am a big supporter for freedom and peaceful change," Haddioui said. "We had a couple of peaceful protests in Morocco which have led to major changes in the constitution of the country, but we have enjoyed our freedoms in Morocco for decades." Haddioui is proud of her country and wants to represent it with distinction.

"My aim is to be the first Moroccan and Arab golfer to make it into the European Tour," she said. "I hope that there will be a lot more women that will follow in my footsteps." Success has already come with gold in women's golf at last year's Arab Games in Qatar in a team which included her younger sister Nezha. Last season, her first as a professional, Haddioui finished 25th in the Lalla Meryem Cup held in her hometown, and made the halfway cut at another Ladies' European Tour (LET) event in Germany.

But it is a big step from collegiate golf to the cut-throat professional world, and this year she will again rely on invites to main tour events. A disastrous second-round 84 at the LET qualifying school in La Manga in Spain wrecked her chances of winning a card with full playing rights. "I don't know what happened there, it was a tough week," she admitted. But Haddioui is undeterred and will be looking to her home tournament in March on the Golf de l'Ocean course in Agadir to make a big impression.

With a men's European Tour event, the Hassan II Trophy, and the Lalla Meryem Cup held in the same week at the end of next month, plus a host of regional tournaments, Morocco is promoting itself as a golf destination par excellence. Outside investment, mainly from the Middle East, has brought several new courses and developments -- as Haddioui says, "taking advantage of our fantastic weather and the opportunity to share a very rich culture." Haddioui aside, Moroccan players either male or female have yet to make a much of an impression among the professional elite, but all that could be changing.

Golf is becoming more affordable for locals thanks to the work of the Royal Golf Federation," she said. With more youngsters playing, the talent is starting to emerge. Ahmad Marjan, 18, has earned an invite to this week's Dubai Desert Classic, where he will rub shoulders with some of the best players in the world. Haddioui will target December's Dubai Ladies' Masters on the LET as she tries to earn enough money to get an automatic card for 2013. Though proud of her roots and background, it was her spell in the United States that decided on her career path.

"Getting an education in the U.S. is definitely the best choice I have made in my life," she said. "It allowed me to play golf and pursue my education at the same time. It has prepared me for my current life as a professional golfer where I have to travel on my own." |CNN

@CNN

Sofia Coppola chose Morocco for Marni

2012-02-07T21:11:00.002Z

Sofia Coppola chose to film her first fashion advert for Marni for H&M in Morocco because the country's colours match the brand's bold prints.

Sofia Coppola filmed her Marni for H&M advert in Morocco because the country's colours match the brand's bold prints. The director made her first ever fashion advert in the country and even chose the location herself to reflect the "unusual" nature of the prints she was promoting.

Sofia told vogue.co.uk: "I was happy to first talk to H&M about this project because I've never really done anything around fashion - and when they told me it was Marni, it sounded like an interesting project.

"The prints are unusual - it doesn't look like anything else - so I wanted to do something artful that represented Marni, and because there are so many bold prints we needed a setting that worked. "I thought of this house in Marrakesh that I'd been to years ago with friends."

In the advert a girl, played by British actress Imogen Poots is pictured in the bleached Moroccan landscape amidst palm trees, rustic colours, swimming pools and parties. She catches the attention of one man and they get together, but it is revealed as a dream.

Sofia said she chose Imogen because she is a very expressive young actress. She added: "I think she's great. She can convey so much without speaking." The advert is soundtracked by 'Avalon' by Roxy Music.

@malextra.com

1st "National Tibu School Tour" in 11 Moroccan Cities

2012-02-07T21:08:00.002Z

Organised by the Association Tibu Morocco, the first edition of the Basketball tournament "National Tibu School Tour" will be held from February 19 to March 1, in 11 cities of the Kingdom.

This tournament will be attended by 2000 participants, including 1,500 high school students, 20 physical education teachers, facility managers and players of the Moroccan basketball league.

The "National Tibu School Tour" will travel to El Jadida (February 20), Safi (21), Essaouira (22), Agadir (23) Marrakech (24), Fez (25), Tangier (27), Kenitra (28 ), Rabat-Sale (29) and Casablanca (March 1), according to a statement of Tibu Morocco.

@yacout.info

Who's giving anonymous calls to Saif from Morocco?

2012-02-06T15:05:00.000Z

Morocco has never seen Bollywood stars visiting it in all these years. So, when Saif Ali Khan along with the team of Agent Vinod landed here for the shoot, the happiness among the locals knew no bounds, to the extent that, Saif and Kareena have been getting anonymous calls from some Moroccan people now.

According to the sources, as soon as Saifeena arrived in Morocco; the people started visiting the couple. Overwhelmed by the gesture, latter received them with much love and affection.

But, now the duo has been flooded with anonymous calls even after they didn’t share their phone numbers with anybody.

@bhaskar.com

Sara Moatamad crowned as Miss Morocco 2012

2012-02-06T14:57:00.001Z

Sara Moatamad, 19, has been named on Sunday as Morocco’s 2012 beauty queen in a competition that was held in the kingdom for the first time ever.

Fifteen contenders took part in the Miss Morocco 2012 competition, held in the luxury Mazagan beach resort on the Atlantic coast. Five of them were then selected for the final round of the competition and Moatamad, from the city of Casablanca, was named as Mss Morocco 2012.

She was quoted by Moroccan media as saying that she followed a balanced diet combined with regular sport exercises, adding that her ambition was to establish an organization that would provide training for young people who were unable to continue their education.

Moatamad will be given an executive one-year salary and a luxury car by a sponsor, the ElJadida24 website reported.

Mss. Morocco 2012, who is in her second year at the National School of Business and Management, will represent Morocco in Miss World 2012 competition.

@alarabiya.net

Morocco Fisheries Agreement to be Closed Soon

2012-02-06T14:51:00.001Z

The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Miguel Arias Cañete, has announced that Coreper (Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU) has approved the negotiating mandate of the fishing agreement with Morocco.

"I want to thank the work of Commissioner Damanaki and all the collaboration from Member States which has helped negotiate the mandate to allow for a definate close of a fisheries agreement with Morocco. This will enable the fishing fleets of Andalusia, Galicia and the Canary Islands to get back to fishing in waters of the Kingdom of Morocco as soon as possible," Mr Arias Cañete added.

|thefishsite.com

Morocco arrests 3 including a Danish national suspected of plotting attacks

2012-02-06T14:49:00.001Z

Moroccan police have arrested three suspects accused of planning to carry out attacks on the security of the state.

The MAP news agency, citing a statement from the interior ministry, says one of the suspects is a Moroccan with Danish nationality who traveled to Morocco from Europe.

The suspects are accused of belonging to an unauthorized organization, the Party for Moroccan Islamic Liberation. Authorities believe the group receives financial support from activists resident in Europe.

|washingtonpost.com

M.I.A. Heads To Morocco For 'Bad Girls' Video

2012-02-05T13:00:00.001Z

There’s plenty of M.I.A. to go around this week. On Friday the outspoken rapper made her debut in the visuals for Madonna’s “Give Me All Your Luvin” single alongside Nicki Minaj, but she’s also got some work of her own to show off. The Romain Gavras-directed video for “Bad Girls,” premiered today.

Gavras is the director responsible for M.I.A.’s controversial “Born Free” video, and the two still seem to retain their chemistry. This latest clip finds her in the Moroccan desert amongst some pretty talented street racers and women toting arms.

"Bad Girls" serves as promo for M.I.A.'s upcoming fourth album, which she intends to release in the summer, but in the mean time she'll join Madonna at the Super Bowl to perform her verse on the material girl's single "Give Me All Your Luvin'," along with Nicki Minaj. "Yes, I'm going to the Super Bowl…," she said during an interview with BBC Radio 1 this week. "I'm gonna be performing with Madonna and Nicki Minaj... If you're gonna go to the Super Bowl, you might as well go with America's biggest female icons."

“As musicians, we’re two women and we represent two opposite sides of the world," she continued, on the Madonna collaboration. "If we can come together on a piece of music or something like the Super Bowl, I feel like that’s actually a cool thing to see this year because it’s getting silly out there.”

@MTV

M.I.A, Bad Girls from ROMAIN-GAVRAS on Vimeo.

Morocco king pardons jailed Islamist leaders

2012-02-05T12:54:00.001Z

Morocco's King Mohammed issued pardons to several leading Islamists who rights groups say were unfairly jailed, signaling a less hardline approach after moderate Islamists came to power in an election last year. Royal pardons are customary each year to coincide with the Muslim holiday of Mawlid, the birthday of the Prophet Mohammad which fell this weekend, but it is unusual for the monarch to pardon such high-profile detainees. The prisoners covered by the pardon included leading figures in an Islamist group called Salafia Jihadia. Morocco's authorities say the group helped orchestrate a coordinated wave of suicide bombings in the commercial capital, Casablanca, in 2003 which killed 45 people.

But local and international human rights groups say after those attacks, Moroccan authorities jailed hundreds of Islamists on fabricated charges, sometimes torturing them to extract forced confessions.

Among those who received pardons were Hassan Kettani, one of the ideological leaders of Salafia Jihadia, who was serving a 20 year sentence, and Mohamed Rafiki and Omar Haddouchi, two other leaders of the group who were each serving 30 years.

The pardons are part of a changing political landscape in Morocco after an election last year which gave the north African country its first Islamist-led coalition government.

The Islamist PJD party spent years in opposition but was helped to victory by a trend in the Middle East for Islamists to gain power in the aftermath of the "Arab Spring" upheavals.

Mustafa Ramid, the new justice minister and himself a PJD member, last month said he would seek royal pardons for critics of the authorities who had been unfairly jailed.

Before his appointment to the government, Ramid was a lawyer who represented several jailed Islamists.

@reuters.com

Tourism showed slight positive increase in 2011

2012-01-30T17:27:00.001Z

Tourism industry showed “slight increase” in 2011, according to the managing director of the Moroccan National Office of Tourism (ONMT) Abdelhamid Addou, amid the economic crisis that hits the world.

Addou said the number of arrivals were 2% higher year on year. “It is a good result compared with competing countries,” notably Egypt and Tunisia, although it is also “frustrating” compared with the expectations, Abdou told Moroccan French-speaking newspaper “L’Economiste.”

“The year 2012 will surely be very difficult,” added Addou who stressed the need to “increase efforts” in order to overcome this situation, while boosting communication campaigns.

@Map

SuperBoy

2012-01-30T17:10:00.000Z

Imagine

THE SEASON FOR OLIVE

2012-01-30T17:02:00.001Z

Olive season has just come to and end…and by olive season I mean that the olives ripened, were harvested, and either pressed for oil or cured to turn them edible. Did you know that both black olives and green olives come from the same tree? Here is a very ripe olive from our family farm.

Did you also know that harvesting olives by hand is a labor intensive business? In Morocco it’s all done this way: a large plastic is laid out under the tree, then you take a long bamboo stick and start to beat at the olives to knock them down. Eventually you have to climb the tree to get to the higher branches. Olives yield about 16 liters of olive oil per 100 kgs of olives, depending on how much the trees were watered. The more they were watered, the juicier the olives.

I will never forget when I was 8 years old and I spent a whole day knocking all the olives off a particular tree. At the end of the day, I had very sore hand and about 20 kgs of olives. I was very excited to lug my harvest down the road to where they would buy them from you for about a dirham per kilo (like 6 cents per pound, for those of you who are allergic to the metric system). I walked back with more than 20 dirhams in my pocket (2.5 dollars). I’d never been prouder of my earnings (maybe even to this day . It didn’t occur to me that those olives actually belonged to my parents, and that technically, I owed them like 90% of the money. They kindly didn’t point it out either.

Everywhere in the Moroccan countryside, you see olive trees, and under them there is wheat or barley growing. Each farming family gets olive oil and flour for the entire year. This way they have fresh bread and olive oil, which, along with sweet green tea, is a meal unto itself. Talk about local, sustainable, organic and vegan….This is how it all once was.

@moroccoboard.com/