Casablanca - The picture above has sent chills down the spines and hearts of many Moroccans. The picture shows a forsaken, elderly woman in El Jadida, (63 miles south of Casablanca) who could not find a better way of sheltering herself from the merciless frigidity of the streets. She could only surround herself with tenuous cardboard in hopes of placating the grimness of the low temperatures outside.
How can cardboard become shelter from winter’s coldness when even bastioned and sealed doors and windows can’t? Published by Moroccan news portal Eljadida24, this picture is only one among many that depict the acute destituteness and pain that the homeless still endure in Morocco, especially in winter.
The picture also casts light on the situation of forsaken elderly people, who face the callous claws of the streets without the slightest preparation. One will frequently come across them here and there, lying in front of mosques’ doors or, just like the woman in the picture above, taking refuge in insecure, vulnerable habitats.
The sad truth is that most of these elderly are abandoned mothers. “Is this really the reward they deserve in their moments of weakness?” Eljadida24 asks in a recent article on forsaken, elderly mothers—not all mothers receive appreciation in return for their motherly love, affection and scarifies.
In the same article, Eljadida24 deplores the irresponsibility of local authorities in El Jadida, one of the many Moroccan cities where the elderly homeless are everywhere.
“The state, local and provincial authorities, elected representatives and community infrastructure must under no circumstances abandon their role to leave these mothers facing an unknown fate,” deplores the news website. “It is the duty of government to protect the elderly and abandoned people.”
During a session held last Tuesday by the House of Representatives, Mrs. Hakkaoui, the Minister of Solidarity, Women, Family, and Social Development, seized the opportunity to highlight the difficulties encountered by the homeless in Morocco, especially the elderly.
The Minister stated, “It is really unworthy of Morocco that an elderly citizen still can’t find a shelter in this cold winter.”
The Minister then called on Moroccan citizens to help social institutions grant shelter to homeless citizens. She went on to say, “If need be, these elderly homeless people should be forced to shelter in social centers, especially in winter.”
Edited by Katrina Bushko
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