Migrants in Morocco could run out of money for food if the country’s coronavirus lockdown continues, with human rights groups urging the government to give migrants the same cash help that it has promised citizens.
Morocco has imposed a month-long lockdown restricting movements except for essential trips such as buying food and medicine and to staffing some key jobs.
It has promised some help to citizens but non-citizens – some in the country legally and some passing through trying to get to Europe – appear unlikely to receive any help.
Morocco says it will pay citizens about $120 (Dh440) a month to workers in private companies who are registered with the state social insurance scheme.
But so far, there is no help for 50,000 migrants who have obtained official residency permits or the far larger number of undocumented migrants, many of them homeless or passing through Morocco.
The National Human Rights Council and the Moroccan Association for Human Rights have urged the government to help.
Morocco has 844 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and has reported 50 deaths.
'We need urgent help'
Saddou Habi, 30, who arrived in Morocco two years ago from Guinea, and decided to stay, rather than trying to reach Europe, after getting a job in a restaurant, said his money will run out in 10 days.
“I have been helping my four other flatmates whose financial situation is worse than mine,” he said.
“We are respecting all measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus but we need urgent help to go through these difficult times.”
Habi has applied for a residency permit, but is still waiting for it to be issued. He lives in the poor Hay Nahda district of Rabat, where houses made of bare concrete blocks press up against each other.
The majority of migrants work in the informal sector earning barely enough money to meet their basic needs for a day, said Ousmane Ba, a Senegalese migrant who runs a community group.
“We are all in the same boat in the face of the coronavirus storm. We have to show solidarity with one another for all to be rescued,” Mr Ba said
So far, the government has put more than 3,000 homeless people, including migrants, into shelters located in schools, stadiums and other buildings for the duration of the lockdown.
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Sun jukebox
Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)
This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.
Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)
The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)
Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.
Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.
Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)
An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.
Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)
Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
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Our legal advisor
Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation.
Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.
