Morocco and the Sahara

Hassan Alaoui Kacimi, since 1998 the Managing Editor of the "Matin du Sahara et du Maghreb", one of the most highly regarded and circulated dailies in Morocco, is a graduate of the Lille School of Journalism (ESJ). He was editor-in-chief of "Maroc-Soir" from 1976 -o 1979, then of the Rabat daily paper "Al Maghrib", which he helped to found. From 1980 to 1984, he was in Paris as the political editor of the African daily news paper, "Continent", then on the foreign desk of "Le Monde". On his return to Morocco, he was attached to the Office of the Minister of Labour as chargé de mission, then returned to "Maroc-Soir" before becoming editor-in-chief of "Le Matin" then of the magazine "Télé Plus", and finally of the weekly "Le Temps du Maroc". Close during his career to the great journalists Hubert Beruve-Méry, André Fontaine and Jean Lacouture, Hassan Alaoui Kacimi is known for his fervent commitment and for his rigour and his professionalism. As a head of publications, he nevertheless has remained a journalist in the field: in 1996, he was arrested "for espionage activities", in Zagreb and was only released by the Croat authorities after lengthy negotiations. We are delighted to welcome him to "African Geopolitics", with an important article with a very personal viewpoint on Morocco and the Sahara question.