|
Moussem de Setti Fatma In the villages of the High Atlas, the summer months are marked by a series of moussems, long- established traditional celebrations focusing on local saints. These tend to be a mix of agricultural fair and clan gathering with a bit of religious ceremonial thrown in. One of the best known is at Setti Fatma, up the Ourika Valley – nice and cool compared to Marrakech in the summer. In recent years, the authorities have tried to have moussems cancelled. The reason given is the health risks generated by large numbers of people gathering in camping grounds with poor facilities. Underlying this may be the worry that festivals are a good opportunity for rigourist Muslim groups to spread their word through cassettes and informal sermons. In some cases, village councils have cancelled the moussem, preferring to put the money into local development projects. (In Aremd, near Toubkal, moussem money went into a small water reservoir for the village.) Still, it is sad that a part of Morocco’s rural heritage seems to be disappearing.
|
