A pledge of complete liberty and equality for the Jews of Morocco was made by the newly reinstated Sultan Sidi Mohammed ben Youssef to a World Jewish Congress delegation at a meeting last night at the Sultan’s residence near here. The Sultan’s statement was made to A. L. Easterman, WJC’s political director and Dr. G. M. Riegner, director of the Congress’ Geneva office.
The Sultan referred to the Nazi occupation of France during World War II, and recalled that he had resisted all pressures by the Germans and the Vichy French to apply discriminatory measures against the Jews of Morocco. Consequently, he asserted, no harm befell the Jews of Morocco throughout the war, and unlike the Jews of other countries who suffered so tragically, Moroccan Jews lived in complete tranquility and freedom throughout that period.
He also told the WJC leaders that “I have always regarded my Jewish subjects as loyal Moroccans and free citizens, in full equality with my Moslem subjects. This is a policy I’ll follow in the future. All my subjects will have full rights, as well as duties, without any distinction as to religious faith. You can be assured that my intentions will be fully demonstrated and realized by my acts when I return to Morocco.”
Evidently referring to recent disturbances in Morocco, in which Jews had been singled out by some demonstrators as particular targets, the Sultan declared, “If there have been any divergences in the past between the Moslems and Jews of Morocco, these have been caused only by external influences, exploiting such differences for their own purposes. For centuries, Moslems and Jews in Morocco have lived together in harmony. It will be my task, as before, to promote and defend that harmony through common loyalty and the equality of rights and obligations in the interests of all my people.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
