During this virtual seminar, in which Morocco was a special guest and which was marked by the participation of Colombian Foreign Minister Claudia Blum, the Moroccan ambassador to Colombia and Ecuador, Farida Loudaya underlined that Morocco, a country which spares no effort to promote the culture of peace and the intercultural and interfaith dialogue, has always been, is and will continue to be a welcoming land of tolerance, acceptance and multiculturalism.
The diplomat recalled that "in Morocco, there is no Muslim or Jew citizens, only Moroccans", as late HM King Mohammed V said during the World War II, when he refused to hand over Moroccan Jews to Vichy France regardless of the ruthless realities imposed by the French occupation.
The late king stood against the Nazi's brutality and every racist law against Moroccan Jews, in a Morocco where Muslims and Jews have always been brothers and cousins, colleagues and partners, friends and allies, she added.
Loudaya noted that this tradition of tolerance was maintained by HM late King Hassan II, a staunch supporter of dialogue between monotheistic religions and of bringing peoples and civilizations closer.
This heritage is continuously promoted by HM King Mohammed VI, who has always defended the kingdom’s Hebrew legacy, she said.
The Moroccan diplomat underscored the multiple rehabilitation projects for the conservation and the promotion of the Jewish-Moroccan cultural heritage, through revamping synagogues, sanctuaries and cemeteries, as well as inaugurating Jewish culture museums all over Morocco.