Letter from Africa: Lamenting the Algeria-Morocco border closure

In our series of letters from African journalists, Algerian-Canadian journalist Maher Mezahi questions why the border between Algeria and Morocco has been closed for thus decades.

The principle crossing between Morocco and Algeria is is called Zouj Beghal, which interprets as “Two Mules”.

Legend has it that a pair of mules had been harnessed to a yoke in Morocco and ordered to march eastwards except they effectively traced what would cease up being the borders that delineate Morocco and Algeria.

On a continent where the majority of our borders are arbitrary, I by no manner doubted the veracity of the delusion.

Naturally, the border that spans simply about 2,000km, has been a source of tension for both countries since independence, starting with the 1963 Sand Battle over Morocco’s claim to territory in Algeria.

The two countries fell out once more when Algeria backed the Polisario Entrance’s advertising and marketing campaign for Western Sahara’s independence from Morocco, ensuing within the 1975-1991 Western Sahara Battle.

Then the border became closed all over once more in 1994, ostensibly for security reasons after militant Islamists bombed a resort within the historic Moroccan metropolis of Marrakesh.

The chubby foremost facets of the connection between the 2 North African countries are awfully leisurely and impossibly complicated but I desire to explicit frustration on behalf of my era with the closing of the border.

As an Algerian who grew up within the diaspora, I rapidly learned that very tiny separates the 2 of us.

In a foreign country, we pray within the identical mosques, lend a helping hand at weddings and fiercely compete in football with one one other.

By manner of customs, culture and language, western Algerians have mighty extra in overall with Moroccans than they abolish with Algerians on the opposite side of the country.

No-one understands that extra than the communities that live alongside the border and who crossed clandestinely for decades on cease.

This year, nonetheless, there has been a shift in tone.

In March, a community of date farmers from Figuig, Morocco, who cultivated a grove in El Arja, Algeria, had been told by the Algerian authorities that they would no longer have the option to abolish so.

Some of the Moroccan families claim to be in possession of bureaucracy that proves the land belonged to their families within the early 20th Century, earlier than the decolonisation direction of.

Nonetheless, the United Worldwide locations-ratified border became strictly enforced by the Algerian authorities, which cited drug smuggling because the motive for the eviction of the date farmers.

For many families in Figuig, agriculture is their sole manner of subsistence and the closing of the border may perchance seemingly ring a loss of life knell for financial prosperity within the plan.

The tensions arose fair appropriate weeks after rules became proposed in Morocco to legalise cannabis for clinical, cosmetic and industrial capabilities.

The Algerian military then raised field referring to the influx of capsules from Morocco, claiming it had seized about 200 tonnes of hashish and 6.3m psychotropic capsules since 2018.

“The Moroccan regime uses all manner to promote its capsules outdoors its borders, ignoring the safety and balance of neighbouring countries,” it alleged in a statement.

In June, Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune ruled out the chance of the border reopening, announcing: “We can’t open borders with a country that attacks us on a each day basis.”

He did now not give an explanation for, however the 2 governments in overall attack every other through their media.

The story about Figuig hit me because I distinctly be conscious it shooting my creativeness on a ravishing prepare go from Oran to Bechar a few years ago.

After falling asleep on the verdant, rugged Mediterranean drift, I woke up the next morning within the Sahara desolate tract at the Figuig-Beni Ounif crossing.

It felt surreal making an are attempting a few hundred metres out of the caboose and seeing Moroccan gendarmes and border patrols.

My peers have by no manner experienced crossing the land border and undoubtedly few have hope that the snort of affairs will exchange any time rapidly.

Total resignation prevails that the 2 governments are unable and unwilling to dialogue, compromise and – infrequently – even respect world regulation.

The stubbornness is critically painful when when put next with the success of regional financial blocs elsewhere in Africa such because the East African Community.

Closed borders translate to envision out-watering, tangible losses for the sterile Arab Maghreb Union.

The bloc, which contains Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, may perchance seemingly were thought to be among the continent’s and plan’s superpowers.

Experts snort the once a year monetary losses of the border closing at billions of bucks across North Africa.

Courageous infrastructure initiatives such because the Trans-Maghreb twin carriageway, which would link 55 cities, 50 million of us and 22 airports from Nouakchott to Tripoli, also seem useless within the water.

Within the era of extra than one countries net hosting world wearing occasions, I dream of a Maghreb account for for Africa’s second World Cup.

But the dream will remain fair appropriate that as long because the 2 governments in Morocco and Algeria abolish now not exchange their ways.

For the dreamers of our era, we will need to resolve on saving up for costly flights if we ever desire to focus on over with one one other’s countries.

Nonetheless if the borders abolish open up in my lifetime, I will plot obvious to spoiled at Zouj Beghal and score out what within the arena these mules had been thinking.