Address of Hon. Rachid Talbi El Alami Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco At the 44th General Assembly of the AIPA
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, and may prayers and peace be upon His noble Messenger
Your Excellency Madam Puan Maharani, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia and President of the 44th Session of the General Assembly,
Your Excellencies, honourable colleagues, heads of legislative institutions and members of delegations,
Your Excellencies the Ambassadors,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the outset, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Her Excellency Madam Puan Maharani, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the sister Republic of Indonesia, for the kind invitation she extended to the House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco to participate in the AIPA's 44th General Assembly, where we enjoy the status of observer member. I am also grateful for the generous hospitality, the outstanding welcome, and the superb organization of this meeting, as well as for providing all the conditions for its success.
This generosity, this ability to organize, and this spontaneity in hosting international conferences are not new or unusual to the great Indonesian nation. This brotherly country has always been a nation that faces challenges. We all remember the Bandung Conference in 1955, which gathered 29 countries from Africa and the newly independent Asia at the time, in addition to the nations that were struggling for liberation from the colonial yoke.
This conference managed to break the intense bipolarity that prevailed at the time, to develop a roadmap for the emergence of the Non-Aligned Movement, and to open up a new horizon for international relations. The nobleness of positions, and the nurturing of international peace initiatives are neither strenuous nor strange to the Indonesian nation, its political leadership and the country's historical elites and symbols, including the leader Sukarno, who is celebrated by Moroccans with streets and squares named in his honour.
We are proud, in the Kingdom of Morocco, of our ties with this brotherly country, be that religion, values, culture, belonging or interests; just as we are proud of our brotherhood and friendship with all the ASEAN countries with whom we have shared the struggle against colonialism, and with whom we are sharing, today, the struggle for development and progress.
Honourable Colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The 44th AIPA General Assembly takes place in an extremely complex international context, open to all possibilities, and expected to witness further tensions and crises unless the members of the international community review the policies in place and take efficient and effective measures to fight the roots of evil.
You have done the right thing by choosing to focus during this session on the role of parliaments in building peace and stability, and in achieving prosperity.
As the time allotted to me does not allow for detailing all the challenges facing the international community, allow me to interact with your valuable interventions and effective suggestions, and to share with you the following observations:
First, the international community is confronted today with the biggest challenges it has not faced since the Second World War. In addition to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global economy, and the serious repercussions of climate disruptions on the human condition, worthy of mention are also the consequences of wars and conflicts, the scarcity of sources of supply and food, and the ensuing intense international competition.
The second observation is that international relations have become based on further fragmentation, instead of polarity and the multiplicity of alliances and axes, leading thus to security challenges, the growth of terrorist movements and their allied separatisms, with all the resulting risks that threaten the integrity and stability of States, and global security as well.
The third observation deals with the rise of national egoisms and the propensity for introversion in the face of these challenges, instead of solidarity, collective mobilization, unity, and joint action in addressing current and future threats.
The fourth observation refers to the ever-increasing divide in development, income and living standard among the components of the international community, especially between the North and the South, and within the same society, as a result of the factors I already mentioned, leading to the increase in migratory movements, and exacerbating the sense of despair and frustration, especially among young people. In parallel with this, there is the growing awareness of disparities through the possibilities of communication networks, which makes institutional democracy under question in terms of productivity, social return and the impact on people's lives.
Honourable Colleagues,
These dilemmas are not an inescapable destiny. The political, moral and historical responsibility of States and their elites, and the seriousness of the international situation do not leave any room for backing down in the face of such dangers. Certainly, your Association can contribute much to warding off these threats, restoring calm and balance in international relations, creating economic, value and cultural levers, and changing the course of the negative equations in a way that facilitates access for all to the benefits of globalization, international trade and technological progress.
There is no doubt that this contribution will be facilitated by the economic and technological rise achieved by the member countries of your Association and its regional environment, along with the discipline and culture of hard work and moderation that distinguish its peoples.
Without the slightest flattery, let me emphasize that your bloc which is based on cooperation and partnership, and which managed to overcome the logic of ideology, is likely to contribute a great deal of economic, technological and human added value, as well as in the field of exchanges, in readjusting the balance of international relations, especially through the sharing of experiences and the transfer of technologies and skills. What favours the ASEAN much in achieving this work is the bloc's distance from the policy of geopolitical axes and its focus on building the new human being, producing wealth, and fostering innovation.
I would like to assure you that my country, the Kingdom of Morocco, which has historical relations with your countries, shares the same concerns, whether in the fight against the causes of climate disruptions, environmental degradation, especially the pollution of oceans and seas, or the localization of green economy projects and the production of energy from renewable sources, all of which are strategic projects in Morocco, contributing to opening up broad prospects for win-win partnerships.
We will be delighted to have new horizons opened for cooperation with the member countries of your Association, especially in strategic projects that contribute to food production, as my country is achieving major projects and contributes to the development of African agriculture, thanks to its skills in this area and its tremendous potentials of phosphates and fertilizers, as well as in the green economy and its related technologies.
The free trade agreements that bind Morocco with many countries and major economic blocs, including the United States, a long-standing ally and friend of the Kingdom, provide immense possibilities of access to markets of about one billion consumers, in addition to 1,500 agreements concluded with African sister countries, a thousand of which have been signed since the accession of His Majesty King Mohammed VI to the throne in 1999.
Besides its strategic location near Europe (less than 14 km) and its African and Mediterranean rooting, Morocco has advanced infrastructure, especially ports on the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts, making the country fit for acting as a hub for trade exchanges with the other African countries with which it has concluded many partnerships, in addition to European countries where Morocco enjoys an advanced status in its relations with the European Union.
All of this can only be strengthened by the stability and security that Morocco enjoys, in addition to economic freedom, and the laws governing investments which provide major guarantees to foreign investments. Also worthy of mention is the Kingdom's pivotal role in consolidating peace and coexistence among religions, beliefs, civilizations and cultures, where the democratic and social constitutional monarchy plays the role of strategic and spiritual guardian.
Honourable Colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In all of this, parliaments have many crucial roles to play: firstly by drawing attention to the dangers of international situations; secondly by seeking to prevent crises and settle conflicts; thirdly by alerting to the need to build a just and equitable international economic order that takes into account the interests of the countries of the South; and fourthly by strengthening institutional democracy that must consider national contexts and cultures, build on achievements and avoid sharp breaks.
Thank you for your attention.