Istiqlal Party

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Morocco
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Morocco

King Mohammed VI Makhzen Prime Minister Driss Jettou Parliament Assembly of Councillors Assembly of Representatives Political parties Elections: 2007 Regions Human rights Foreign relations Western Sahara conflict
Other countries · Politics Portal view • talk • edit

Istiqlal offices in Casablanca

The Istiqlal or Independence Party (Arabic: حزب الإستقلال hizb al-istiqlāl, French: Parti de l'Istiqlal) is a political party in Morocco.

Originally founded in the 1940's, Istiqlal held strongly nationalist views and was the main political force struggling for the independence of Morocco. For the party's leader Allal El Fassi, the independence would not be complete without the liberation of all the territories that once were part of Morocco, and was often critical of the ruling monarchy, after being instrumental in liberating the country from French colonialism. Independence was achieved in 1956, and the party then moved into opposition against the monarchy, which had asserted itself as the country's main political actor. Together with the leftist UNFP, which split off from Istiqlal in 1959, and later the USFP, the Istiqlal would form the backbone of the opposition to King Hassan II in the years to come. The Istiqlal party has taken part in many coalition governments in the late 1970s and till the mid-80s. In 1998, together with the USFP and other smaller parties, the Istiqlal formed the Alternance, the first poltical experience in the Arab World where the opposition assumed power through the ballots.

At the latest legislative elections, 27 September 2002, the party won 48 out of 325 seats.

In January 2006, Istiqlal critizised Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's visit to the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla on the north African coast, reflecting its nationalist heritage.