Latest news with #MACBI
Ya Biladi
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Morocco : A parallel event at the World Sociology Forum dedicated to Palestine
The day after the opening of the Fifth World Forum of Sociology, held from July 6 to 11, 2025, in Rabat under the theme «Understanding Justice in the Age of the Anthropocene», the BDS Morocco movement and the National Federation of Education (FNE) are organizing an academic session dedicated to Palestine. Scheduled for Monday, July 7, at 7:30 PM at the union's headquarters, the event aims to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and to reject all forms of academic normalization with Israel. Held under the theme «No Justice, No Love: Gaza at the Limits of the Anthropocene», the session will feature contributions from researchers Kawtar Najib (University of Liverpool – UK), Franca Marquardt (École Normale Supérieure, Florence – Italy/Germany), Ajma Hussain (University of Warwick – UK), Lujain Beruwien (University of Edinburgh – UK), and Fahid Qurashi (University of Salford – UK). This show of solidarity takes place in a context where the Moroccan Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI) has urged the International Sociological Association (ISA) to reconsider its Forum program, which includes participants directly or indirectly affiliated with Israeli universities. One session in particular has drawn criticism for referring to the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, as a «terrorist» organization. When questioned by MACBI, the ISA responded by citing «academic freedom» as its rationale.
Ya Biladi
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Protests planned in Rabat over Israeli speakers at 5th ISA Forum of Sociology
As the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology opens from July 6 to 11, 2025, at Mohammed V University in Rabat, a protest has been announced against the participation of speakers affiliated with Israeli universities. The sit-in, called by the Moroccan Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI), is scheduled for this Sunday at 5 PM in front of the Mohammed V National Theater. In its call to mobilize, the group (part of the BDS Morocco movement) invites «all students, researchers, academics, and free citizens» to join the gathering and express their «firm rejection of academic normalization and any form of normalization» with Israel. Four days ahead of the forum's opening, the first time it is being held in Africa, MACBI renewed its call for the International Sociological Association (ISA) to reconsider the inclusion of participants directly or indirectly affiliated with Israeli academic institutions. In a statement, the organization noted that the suspension of the Israeli Sociological Society's (ISS) ISA membership on June 29 did not prevent some of its members or associated researchers from taking part in the forum. Their names remain on the program, with at least one presentation explicitly referring to the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, as a «terrorist» organization. This 5th ISA Forum of Sociology comes amid more than 600 days of ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. Against this backdrop, 232 Moroccan and international researchers have launched a petition announcing their boycott of the event, urging the ISA to revise its program.
Ya Biladi
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Moroccan campaign urges ISA to rethink Israeli presence at sociology forum
The freezing of the Israeli Sociological Society's (ISS) membership within the International Sociological Association (ISA) has not prevented Israeli researchers from participating in the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology. The event, scheduled to take place from July 6 to 11, 2025, at Mohammed V University in Rabat, still includes contributions from Israeli institutions, one of which explicitly refers to Hamas as a «terrorist» organization, even as the event unfolds amid more than 600 days of war in Gaza. On Wednesday, July 2, the Moroccan Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI) renewed its call for mobilization, urging the organizers to reconsider their stance. In a written statement received by Yabiladi, the organization—part of the BDS Morocco coalition—affirmed that «the participation of Israeli researchers is indeed maintained at the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology», calling it «an unacceptable form of normalization». It added, «The ISA's suspension of the Israeli Sociological Society does not mean that representatives of universities complicit in genocide will not attend». According to MACBI, the event's program still includes 17 presentations by researchers affiliated with Israeli institutions. «Maintaining their participation, without issuing a statement to cancel it, amounts to a clear act of normalization», the group stated. It also criticized ISA for not addressing key demands raised in the June 24 declaration by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), which was endorsed by Arab and international scholars, as well as the Palestinian Sociological And Anthropological Association. MACBI called on ISA to engage with PACBI's demands, which include ensuring that Israeli participants support Palestinian rights in line with international law, and verifying that they are not implicated in violations such as war crimes or crimes against humanity. The demands also call for ISA to adopt a consistent «land recognition» policy for universities in settler colonial contexts, including Palestine, and to acknowledge the complicity of Israeli universities in their state's actions against Palestinians. The statement follows a similar call by the Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel in Lebanon. In light of ISA's unchanged position, MACBI renewed its call to boycott the forum «unless the association meets ethical standards that ensure it does not harm the Palestinian cause, and instead contributes to ending the genocide and dismantling the Israeli apartheid regime». The ISA, for its part, has invoked «academic freedom» to justify the inclusion of Israeli researchers. This renewed call comes just days after the ISA officially froze ISS membership on June 29. In an earlier statement to Yabiladi, MACBI coordinators stressed that Israeli institutional affiliation was not a disqualifying criterion in the selection of speakers, hence the ongoing mobilization. So far, 232 researchers have declared their boycott of the forum until the ISA reconsiders its position.
Morocco World
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
International Sociological Association Suspends Israeli Membership Due to Moroccan Pressure
Marrakech – The International Sociological Association (ISA) has suspended the collective membership of the Israeli Sociological Society, pointing to its failure to condemn the 'genocide of Palestinians' in Gaza. The move follows intense pressure from Moroccan academics and global organizations opposing Israeli participation in the upcoming ISA Forum set for next month in Rabat. In a statement, the ISA declared: 'We regret that the Israeli Sociological Society has not taken a clear position condemning the dramatic situation in Gaza.' The association stated that 'in a decision that reflects the extraordinary gravity of the current situation, the Executive Committee has decided to suspend the collective membership of the Israeli Sociological Society.' The ISA affirmed that as part of its public stance against 'the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza,' it maintains 'no institutional relationships with Israeli public institutions.' The suspension comes after forceful protests from Moroccan academics who objected to Israeli participation in the Fifth World Forum of Sociology, scheduled at Mohammed V University in Rabat from July 6-11. The executive committee acted in response to demands from numerous national and international bodies, and after many academics announced they would boycott the world forum. The Moroccan Sociological Association had previously voiced its rejection of Israeli participation and any narrative undermining Palestinian rights. The association stated it does not welcome anyone affiliated with the 'Zionist entity,' and that hosting the World Forum requires everyone to respect Moroccan values and positions. The Moroccan Campaign for Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (MACBI), operating within the BDS Morocco movement, called on the ISA 'to cancel the participation of academics who represent Israeli institutions involved in the settler-colonial system and Israeli apartheid.' The campaign stressed that 'the demand to cancel certain participations that appear from their summaries to promote a narrative justifying the killing and ongoing genocide for more than 600 days does not infringe on the fundamental principles of sociology, including the critical exchange of viewpoints, but rather avoids normalizing the legitimization of the ongoing crime of genocide that violates international law.' MACBI further argued that 'mentioning the Zionist genocide universities to which these participants belong is a clear act of normalization according to boycott standards.' They questioned whether the ISA could 'guarantee that Israeli participants are not directly or indirectly involved—including through incitement or inhumane justification—in Israel's serious violations of Palestinian rights, especially war crimes, crimes against humanity, including apartheid and genocide.' 'Israel should be isolated and expelled from all international fora' Moroccan academics contended that the ISA had displayed double standards by quickly suspending Russian sociologists during the Ukraine conflict while initially failing to take similar action against Israeli counterparts despite their connections to military and intelligence circles. They further argued that claims of scientific neutrality are fundamentally flawed, particularly in social sciences, and questioned how academic impartiality could be invoked to justify including representatives from a state actively engaged in genocidal actions. The Moroccan Sociological Association had previously asserted in a release that 'the barbaric practices committed against Palestinian civilians, which Israeli authorities intend as material and moral extermination of the Palestinian existence, push us to not welcome any affiliate of this usurping entity, even within scientific and academic activities.' The Progressive Current of Professors and Researchers within the National Union of Higher Education (SNE-Sup) also expressed 'deep concern' about the participation of 'academics representing institutions from the Zionist entity involved in the settler-colonial system and Zionist apartheid,' rejecting attempts to label the Moroccan university as 'complicit with war criminals.' Before the ISA's decision, the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) had urged academics standing in solidarity with Palestinians to pressure the ISA to cancel the participation of Israeli academics. PACBI warned that failure to do so should result in a complete boycott of the forum. In its statement last week, PACBI argued that 'at a time when Israel, supported by the colonial West, is perpetrating the world's first livestreamed genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in the occupied and besieged Gaza Strip, and in line with international law, Israel should be isolated and expelled from all international fora.' The campaign also referenced the International Court of Justice's July 2024 determination that 'Israel's occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is entirely illegal and that it is violating the prohibition against apartheid.' The ISA's Fifth Forum of Sociology will proceed in Rabat next week, now without Israeli institutional representation.
Morocco World
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Controversy Mares Rabat Sociology Forum as Moroccan Academics Reject Israeli Participation
Marrakech – A fierce controversy has engulfed the upcoming World Sociology Forum in Morocco as academic organizations and activists across the country demand the immediate exclusion of Israeli researchers from the event. The prestigious fifth World Sociology Forum, set for July 6-11, at Mohammed V University in Rabat, now faces a mounting crisis after multiple Moroccan academic bodies called for a complete boycott of Israeli participants in direct protest against the ongoing genocide in Gaza perpetrated by Netanyahu's government, which faces international arrest warrants. The Moroccan Campaign for Academic and Cultural Boycott (MACBI), operating within the BDS Morocco movement, has formally demanded that the International Sociological Association (ISA) cancel all participation by Israeli academics at the forum. In a strongly worded statement released Wednesday, the BDS Morocco coordination condemned 'the participation of Israeli academics from complicit institutions' of the occupation, without 'respect for fundamental ethical conditions.' The movement pointed out that while Gaza continues to suffer under genocide since October 7, 2023, the ISA still plans to include three speakers from Israel. One presenter reportedly characterizes Hamas as a 'terrorist organization' and references the 'displacement' of Israelis following Hezbollah attacks. MACBI forcefully reminded that 'in 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank was illegal and constituted apartheid.' When confronted by MACBI regarding presenters whose communications allegedly promote the occupation's narrative, the ISA defended its stance, claiming it would 'not cancel these participations' because of its 'commitment to academic freedom' and desire to 'offer a platform for dialogue as open as courageous.' The dispute has mobilized Moroccan academics nationwide. The Progressive Current of Professors and Researchers within the National Union of Higher Education (SNE-Sup) declared 'deep concern about the repercussions of the announcement' by the ISA. The union's secretariat stated that 'the universities of the Zionist entity are partners and strategic actors in the occupation and institutionalization of apartheid, providing academic cover for ethnic cleansing policies, developing repression and espionage tools in cooperation with the occupation army.' They added that these institutions 'host military bases and security research centers, institutionalize racial discrimination against Palestinian students, and justify crimes against humanity, including famine, massacres, and genocide perpetrated in Gaza.' For the union, holding this forum in Morocco with academics from institutions 'involved in these crimes' represents 'an attack on the image of the Moroccan university, its moral and academic credibility.' Respecting national values and regional solidarity principles The Moroccan Sociological Association has issued an unequivocal rejection of Israeli participation in the forum. The association firmly stated that hosting the event in Rabat must come with 'the necessity of respecting Moroccan values and related positions, especially concerning vital issues for Morocco.' The association asserted that 'the barbaric practices committed against Palestinian civilians, which Israeli authorities intend as material and moral extermination of the Palestinian existence, drive us […] to not welcome those belonging to the usurping entity even within scientific and academic activities, out of respect for national commitments and the feelings of Moroccans, and to preserve the ties that unite us with components of the region to which we belong.' The association strongly condemned 'the Israeli attack on all the foundations of the Palestinian people' and denounced 'all forms of extermination practiced against their right to exist within an independent homeland where they can exercise their sovereignty and live with dignity.' It demanded that the international community 'take the necessary measures to stop these crimes committed against the Palestinian people, and guarantee their legitimate rights in service of global and regional peace.' The association further insisted that adherence to the academic ethics underlying the ISA's laws is 'necessary and obligatory with regard to respecting international charters and relevant resolutions, especially those related to the Palestinian cause during the selection and programming of participations.' 'An ideological and dangerous drift' However, Moroccan sociologist Jamal Fezza has criticized what he called an 'ideological and dangerous' drift. In a social media post, Fezza argued that 'sociology is a universal knowledge shaped by both Jewish and Christian thinkers, and no identity dogma can dictate its boundaries.' He added that 'the most important tools that a sociologist should be armed with is the axiological neutrality that Max Weber called for, without which sociology mixes with opinion and belief.' Expanding on his position, Fezza stated that the call to boycott the forum due to Israeli participants 'reflects a profound ignorance of the tasks entrusted to sociology, and an attempt to involve science and scientists in ideological and political polemics far removed from the nature of this science and the goals it aspires to.' 'For the person who calls for boycotting the World Forum with that argument to be fully consistent with himself, he needs only boycott sociology itself, because it is simply a science produced by Jews and some Christians. From Durkheim and Simmel through Levi-Strauss and Ezra Park, you will not find the name Ahmed or Ismail leaving their mark in the history of this great science,' Fezza concluded. Equating 'the criminal and the victim' Even so, a petition has gained momentum among Moroccan researchers rejecting the participation of Israeli academics in the forum. Researchers are withdrawing en masse from the event, with both Moroccan and international academics pulling out in a powerful show of solidarity with Palestine. Within hours of the petition's circulation, numerous participants canceled their presentations, creating a ripple effect that threatens the forum's viability. The researchers stated: 'We, researchers in social sciences, Moroccans and from the rest of the world, express our boycott of the Fifth Sociology Forum of the International Sociological Association, due to the participation of Zionist institutions involved, in one way or another, in the ongoing genocide war on Gaza, and the programming of interventions that appear from their summaries to promote the colonial narrative.' The petition signatories accused the ISA of 'violating' ethical and research standards by equating 'the criminal and the victim' on the same platform through programming topics that 'beautify the ongoing genocide war on the Palestinian people.' According to official information, more than 30 Israeli academics and researchers are scheduled to attend, representing Israeli universities that the boycott movement classifies as institutions involved in the occupation and apartheid system, including the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Ben-Gurion University, Bar-Ilan University, Tel Aviv University, and the Open University of Israel. Academic cooperation between Morocco and Israel began in February 2021, when the education ministers of both countries agreed to launch a program for exchanging student delegations and conducting educational competitions in Arabic and Hebrew in both countries. Despite strong opposition from Moroccan anti-normalization groups, the Moroccan Minister of Higher Education, Abdellatif Miraoui, and his Israeli counterpart, Orit Farkash-Hacohen, signed the first cooperation agreement between universities and research centers in May 2022. Morocco announced the renewal of diplomatic relations with Israel on December 10, 2020, after they were suspended in 2000 following the outbreak of the Second Palestinian Intifada.
