Morocco's King Mohammed
Photo: AP
Jewish woman runs in Moroccan elections
Maggie Cacoun first Jewish woman to run for seat in Moroccan parliamentary elections. ‘I do not want to be treated as a Jew,’ Cacoun says
Maggie Cacoun, a 54-year-old businesswoman from Casablanca, is the first Jewish woman to run for a seat in Morocco’s parliament.
Cacoun, who was recently elected to head the woman’s list of the Al-Wast Al-Aghtama’i (Social Center) party, did not want her Jewish background to become the focus of her campaign.
"I do not want to be treated as a Jew. I am a loyal Moroccan citizen first," she said.
Nevertheless, her candidacy has been the talk of the elections that will conclude at the end of the week.
Since news of her Jewish identity broke, Cacoun has been asked to explain why she had not made aliyah to Israel, and how the Moroccan Jewish community viewed her involvement in political and social issues.
"I have never considered leaving Morocco. Since I am first and foremost a patriot of Morocco, I want to focus on what’s being done in my country. I did not seek permission to run from the Jewish community. The only person I consulted with was my husband, and he gave me his blessing," Cacoun explained.
Cacoun is not the only Jewish Moroccan of the estimated 5,000 Jews living in the country to be running in its parliamentary elections. Contractor Joseph Levy joins his fellow community member in the race.
Before the establishment of Israel in 1948, there were some 300,000 Jews in Morocco.
