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CHAPTER V The Alliance and the Jewish Communities in the Protectorates' Political Arena "II serait extremement desirable que Ie gouvernement francais pilt venir au secours de I'Al/iance israelite dont Ie role est precisement la propagation de la langue francaise. On peut dire que I'Al/iance israelite joue en quelque sorte au Maroc Ie meme role que les missions catholiques en Orient ...." (Henri Regnault, French Minister Plenipotentiary in Tangier to the Quai d'Orsay: 1912). It has been pointed out that Morocco was divided into three zones of influence: the French protectorate, the Spanish protectorate, and the international zone of Tangier. The latter was administered by a legislative assembly that represented the following nations: France, England, Spain, Portugal, the U.S.A., the Soviet Union, Belgium, Italy, and Holland. The assembly was established in 1924 and was presided over by the mandiib, representing the makhzan. I France benefited the most from the political events that began in 1912. The March 30, 1912 treaty achieved for her the following aims: the sultan consented to French plans for placing troops throughout the French zone; he granted the French full police and military power for the restoration of public order and for Morocco's air and land defenses; he agreed that the French government would be represented before the makhzan by a Commissaire Resident General;2 he delegated the Resident General the power of signing, in the name of the Sherifian government, all royal !-ahirs, and therefore, the Resident General was able to influence or even dictate the contents of the decrees. Without his signature the !-ahlrs were null and void. For his part, the Resident General merely consented to respect Islamic institutions and traditions as well as the sultan's dignity. 3 151 152 The Jewish Communities and the Alliance between 1912 and 1956 1. Modern Education in French Morocco: Struggles and Challenges: 1912-1928 After the signing of the Franco-Spanish treaty of November 1912, the two pO'Ners embarked on a military pacification campaign between 1912 and 1934 to ensun~ the stability of the makhzan and to consolidate the economic and strat,;:gic status of their newly acquired influence. The campaign was carried out successfully, particularly under the command of the French Resident General, Maft!chal Lyautey.4 The padfication policies enfeebled the political authority of the makhzan and of tribal mediators (known as muriibWn) and warriors. The latter, having lost military parity with the central authorities, lost also their ability to challenge or evade the same authorities; and as the French protectorate was able to administer areas formerly in the s7ba, the importance of the muriibi~ as an accepted mediator in local disputes was greatly diminished. 5 Thus the central elements of the traditional system-qii'ids, tribes, muriibi(in, and the makhzan - were reduced to a role of secondary importance under the protectorate . 6 The pacification policies which enabled Jews and Muslims to walk the streets relatively unharmed, sparked important economic and political changes for the Jews in particular. David Ovadia, one of Sefrou's most renowned rabbis, observed that with the stabilization of French presence the self-confidence of the Jews increased because: (1) the Berbers were disarmed; (2) a ruling administrative unit known as Bureau des Affaires Indigimes was created in every rural region, commanded by an army officer to maintain law and order; (3) the Jews began serving French soldiers as community suppliers; and (4) in a short period roads were built, a modern rail system established, and new transportation facilities were put to use, enabling the Jews to extt~nd their business activities with relative ease.7 Pacification and the protectorate proved to be a disadvantage to the Muslims, notably for intellectuals. The new system, more in the French than Spanish zone, alienated the educated who grouped into nationalist factions , first asking for reforms and a greater participatory role in the administrative apparatus, and then, when they were convinced that they were marginal participants, revolted and called for a total break with the system. As Kenneth L. Brown observed, the young men of Sale who attained an education and a familiarity with world politics in the 1920s were dynamic and ambitious, and not unnaturally wanted to have a voice in the affairs of government. Many had been encouraged by the French authorities to believe that by virtue of their education administrative careers would be opened to them. These ambitions and promises remained unrealized, and they began to see themselves through French eyes...

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