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RABAT-MOROCCO-20050702-PHOTO JUANVRIJDAG.COM/HH. Morocco tries to cope with its dark past with human rights violations . But for many people this process is going to slow. During the reign of the previous king Hassan II, the father of the current king Mohammed VI, an estimate of 19000 people disappeared. With a semi-official process the human rights organisation AMDH (Association Marocaine des droits humains) tries to exhort the Moroccan government to trial and condemn offenders. During the symbolic process an Moroccan ex-secret agent Achmed Boekari talked publicly about his past for the first time since the publication of his book four years ago. Mr. Boukhari disclosed his version of the involvement of Moroccan security forces in systematic human rights violations against Moroccan citizens in the 1960s and 1970s, including the 1965 abduction, torture and murder of opposition leader Mehdi Ben Barka. As a former member of the Moroccan secret service, Ahmed Boukhari claimed in 2001 that Ben Barka had died during interrogation in a villa south of Paris. He said Ben Barka's body was then taken back to Morocco and destroyed in a vat of acid. A pattern of "disappearances", starting from Iran, passing by Morocco in the 1960-70s, and continuing on into South America's dirty wars during the 1970s-80s was discovered. Mr. Boukhari is the first Moroccan policeman ever to speak out about the savage methods used by his colleagues during the worst period of repression since independence. His charges are consistent with the results of investigations of international human rights organizations. Victims of the oppression and family members of people who where killed during 'the years of lead" as the dark page in Moroccan history is called, demanded answers at the trial. .After the terrorist attacks of may 16th 2003 in Cassablanca many Islamists were arrested and are still in jail without a trial. Their families and the human rights organisations demanded a fair trial or the relea
