More than three million Moroccans rallying around a single issue, during a peaceful march in Casablanca, was no spontaneous act. If this mass demonstration had taken place in Saharan provinces or on the borders of the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, which are occupied by Spain in the north of the country, millions more would have taken part. The source of the popular momentum in a march of this magnitude lies in the injustice felt by Moroccans as they received their dead security troops, who had been butchered by knives and swords. The issue was not about a misappraisal of the requirements of dismantling the tents of refugees of Saharan origin who had put forth social demands. The Moroccan security forces' failure to defend themselves represented a political and moral choice of dealing with a complicated issue without resorting to the use of force. Some of the victims were also of Saharan origin. The bloody events in El-Oyoun coincided with the commemoration of two events: the Green March and the conclusion of the Madrid Agreement, which required a withdrawal of the Spanish administration and army from Saguia el-Hamra and Oued ed-Dahab. However, the Spanish People's Party has entered directly into the conflict. Some of the angry voices do not hide the fact that the relationship between Spain and the Saharans has cultural roots. Some of them say that the Sahara is Spanish… thus, a nearly-forgotten conflict has arrived at a new phase, one of diplomatic confrontation between Rabat and Madrid. The former Spanish prime minister, Jose Maria Aznar, responded forcefully to the Spanish withdrawal from the Sahara after around three decades, when he ordered the occupation of the island of Laila, in the north of the country, after some Moroccan forces deployed there as a part of the war on illegal emigration. The People's Party has influenced the rounds of a struggle that has now involved the European Parliament. Therefore, the organizing of a mass march in Casablanca against the conservative Spanish People's Party involves recalling past history. However, the utopia that some Spanish politicians infused it with might become a complete truth tomorrow, if the conflict over sovereignty over the cities of Ceuta and Melilla is re-opened. The Spanish People's Party used the rhetoric of defending human rights to win over the European Parliament to its call to form an investigating committee for the El-Oyoun events, since one of the victims held the Spanish citizenship. The march in Casablanca used a counter-approach by highlighting that what joins the Moroccan and Spanish peoples is greater than mere rivalry, hostility and tension. In return, Morocco's labor unions, which threatened to call a general strike in all commercial and economic institutions owned by Spaniards in Morocco, reconsidered their move. They did this based on the idea that it was only a hint that joint interests required maintaining restraint and surrendering to the logic of coexistence between two neighboring countries. It is unlikely, despite the emerging crises between Madrid and Rabat, that the Moroccans will ignore things. In the east, one is struck by the closing of land borders, and in the south the repercussions of the Sahara issue continue. However, looking north brings one into conflict with the repercussions of these crises. In fact, the Spanish, like the Europeans, realize that the extensions of their interests in the direction of Africa certainly depend on a complete normalization with North African countries. It might be difficult for the Spanish Socialist Party to stand by and watch this open confrontation between Morocco and its rival the People's Party. However, the Moroccan card has not left the imagination of Spanish political elites. This is due to the joint history of the two countries, which has involved religious wars and military occupations. At the same time, there has been rare cultural coexistence. The question is there: who will win out in this stalemated struggle? It seems likely that the logic of wars has ended. However, the logic of coexistence, on both sides of the Mediterranean, does not appear to lack tensions and contradictions; the situation calls for considerable contemplation of the picture, to decide that these two countries can coexist despite all of the bitterness and clashes.
