Faithful to a far-right discourse pinning troubles on the “Other”, president of Spanish-occupied Ceuta, Juan Vivas of VOX party used the fear of migrants to diabolize Morocco. “It is shameful to see Spain assign the task of curbing migratory flows to Morocco,” he said. The daily humiliation of Moroccan women on the border who earn their living through smuggling goods on their fragile backs has for long been subject of outcry in Morocco. Some 200 minors also cross daily the Bab Sebta border post, carrying heavy bales of goods and packages on their backs for merchants and retailers in Northern Morocco. The Moroccan economy loses up to 12.5 billion dirhams annually to smuggling originating from the Spanish occupied cities of Ceuta and Melilla while Spain gains 700 million euros in profits.

Source: The North Africa Journal January 19, 2020 10:41 UTC