I should note, btw, that I believe Charlotte is wrong re religion, as I seem to recall at the Muqataa for birth registry one does something, but memory is vague so I may be wrong.

All cultures have their hypocrisies and as Ramadan goes the Moroccan approach has its share – although to my experience not really more so than an Egypt, Jordan or Syria re the Muslim communities. Different but not subjectively grossly more hypocritical. The quiet acceptance of non-fasting, non-praying, etc so long as one does not make a big deal of it is the current sociological accomodation. Some hypocrisies are necessary, in this instance I’d call the Moroccan one relative to religious practice a necessary point in sociological change. Cultures and societies do not magically transform themselves, whatever activists might desire against some theoretical ideals.

As such, I agree in most respects with Conflict Analyst.

I’d also note that I think Charlotte’s “cultural Muslim” is a bit precious as the concept remains quite controversial among observant Xian and Jewish communities – and quite alien to the MENA experience. For someone who purports to be undertaking sociological and anthropological research, she is quite tone deaf.

In any case, the action was spectacularly poorly thought through, and extremely counter productive and self-indulgent. I agree with CA’s tie back to Le Journal and Tel Quel, and add that there is no small degree of class snobbery in much of that fringe of society – the observant, culturally conservative (if in application ‘flexible’) ordinary Mohammed rightly and accurately feels that this portion of the Francophone elite (not all of it, but without doubt the Tel Quel portion) do in fact look down on them, and snub their values at every turn. That is not at all healthy, in particular given the oligarchic tendencies in the economy. Mind you, these are the kind of people I do business with all the time – while I can understand where these Mali folks came from, this was rather too “special” to be a good idea, or even to genuinely advance the cause of religious freedom. Rather, it adds fuel to the fire and gives cause to the Islamists who claim the secularised can’t even be bothered to give the ordinary folks basic beliefs a tiny fiddle of respect. That is dangerous for real change.

Since its inception no government has had the guts to abolish the law. Whenever they have tried the religious groups call the government un-Islamic and manage to uphold this infamous law.

Groups and person SHOULD challenge laws they find unjust. In the United States and South Africa there were unjust laws on segregation. Only when groups and individuals stood up did they manage to abolish them.

Jillian, i fully agree your personal viewpoint. I also realize that there is no true Muslim state. However when all else fails even moderate Muslim states like Morocco use religion and the Koranic laws as an excuse. Anyone who challenges these Islamic laws can then be termed an infidel.