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The comparison between Morocco’s and Tunisia’s idea of citizenship- Zhuri Bryant

I have found that there are only a few commonalities and many differences between Morocco and Tunisia. I have observed that both countries seem to place a lot of value in community and sharing with one another. In terms of politics, both have secular governments with an Islamic undertone. However, I can’t help but feel that this is all that the two countries have in common.

The two countries, while both in he Arab world, seem incredibly different. For one, Moroccans are less connected to the political scene but in Tunisia, it seems to be a big part of their everyday lives. The idea of political progression is so strong in Tunisia that when the President died, the citizens seemed more concerned about navigating through the governmental shifts and preparing for elections rather than mourning his death. The Moroccans on the other hand are very invested in the idea of the King. In Morocco, everywhere we go there it’s easy to spot a picture of the King at a market, a restaurant, or even in someone’s house . It seems that Moroccans are more attached to the culture and tradition of having a King rather than politics, where the Tunisians were focused on politics and cementing their efforts for liberation. 

With that, the Moroccan idea of citizenship revolves around culture and community. Living in Fez, I could sense that Moroccan citizenship was derived from how someone was able to participate in cultural exchanges. Politics are almost always left unmentioned. However in Tunisia, political participation seems key to one’s citizenship status. The connection one had to the revolution not only validates their citizenship but creates and builds a new form of community in Tunisia as well. However, I would like to acknowledge my biased perspective as we only stayed in tourist areas and talked to revolutionaries in Tunisia. I wasn’t able to fully get a sense of what the average Tunisian might feel about the government or their citizenship. 

Lastly, religion doesn’t seem to play as large of a role in Tunisia as it does in Morocco. In Morocco, religion seemed to play a central role in everyone’s daily life, especially in Fez. I vividly remember hearing my homestay father praying in the morning. However, in Tunis, the country was clearly influenced by Islam, but was still very focused on politics and cementing democracy into their secular government. 

While Tunisia and Morocco don’t share many things, together, they show that the Arab world is not a monolith and that there is plenty to explore and understand. As we study the Arab world, it is very helpful to have both perspectives.

 

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