No Fear: Moroccan rappers risk free speech

by Tabor Smith
RABAT, Morocco Mouad Belrhouat, 27, ashes his cigarette and adjusts his flat-billed Buffalo
Sabres hat as he sits alone in the back row of a caf patio in Rabat, working on his computer
and answering phone calls. Belrhouat, a Moroccan rapper known as El Haqed (The Enraged
or The Spiteful), is a busy man, fielding questions from reporters and human rights advocates
around the world. He was just released from prison and says his only crime was his lyrics, in
which he targets public officials including the King. It was the third time in prison for Belrhouat -this time he was in for four months.
Its not about the place; my mind is free. Even when I go to prison, I am free, said Belrhouat.
Theres no freedom of speech in this kingdom in North Africa. And people risk jail time for
criticizing the Islamic religion, the King and for crossing other red line issues. But rappers like
Belrhouat are willing to risk jail repeatedly in their quest for democracy and freedom of speech.
They say the movement theyve started has brought change and is gaining momentum.
Belrhouat is one of eight members of the Oukasha family, a small group of Moroccan rappers
aged from 17 to 28, mostly from the impoverished Oukasha neighborhood in Casablanca, and
focused on change through a sub genre called prison rap.
Prison rap has no boundaries. You can say whatever you want, whenever you want. No rules.
Nobody can tell you to stop. You are free, said Belrhouat.
According to the U.S. Department of States 2013 Morocco Human Rights Report, Moroccan
law criminalizes and the government actively prosecutes statements criticizing Islam, the
institution of the monarchy, state institutions, [and] officials such as those in military.

Belrhouats second jail sentence, in 2012, was for attacking the image of security services in
Morocco. His arrest came after the release of his song Dogs of the State, in which he
addresses police corruption. You are paid to protect the citizens, not to steal their money," he
said in the song. "Did your commander order you to take money from the poor?"
Mustapha Chaker, 25, alias Danger, is one of the eight members of the Oukasha family. He
says that they believe their music is playing an important role in Morocco. The Oukasha
familys songs play the role that the associations and NGOs of Morocco dont play, he said,
Weve noticed a big change from 2008 to now, especially pertaining to the courage of
expression.
Cristina Moreno Almeida is a PhD student at the SOAS University in London, where she is
working on a thesis on the youth pop cultural movement in Morocco surrounding hip-hop. She
said that what is making Belrhouats movement so powerful is his marketable narrative. It was
good for him to go to jail because now he has become famous. And these are words that El
Haqed said, not me, said Almeida.
Almeida agrees that change is happening in Morocco. There has been a change, an obvious
change, she said. The red lines are less blurred, she said, people know when to cross it and
not to cross it.
Other Moroccan rappers disagree about the method the Oukasha family is using to attempt to
make change. Rapper Youssra Oukaf, 29, the prominent female rapper who works under the
name Soultana, says that she doesnt believe insulting government officials is a productive way
of bringing change.
Its not about insulting somebody. Im not going to insult you just to make a change. This does
not make sense, said Oukaf. Its not just about insulting the king or insulting the cops. This is
crazy. This is nonsense You cant find peace with war.
Still, rappers like Belrhouat continue to create with the goal of bringing change. In the end, I
remain convinced that prison rap will help bring my generation, and all Moroccans, closer to

freedom. And for that, I will pay whatever cost the government wants to impose on me, he
wrote.
Nora Znaidi contributed reporting.