Moroccan medical students protest privatization of medical education
The government’s decision to privatize medical education has caused protests among medical students in public schools that have been ongoing since late March.
“Our goal is not to organize a march; it’s to find a solution,” says Saad Mazouni, a medical student from Marrakesh, Morocco. He is one of 18,000 Moroccan medical students entering the third month of their strike, which began on March 25. They are protesting privatization of medical education and recent reforms to the medical education system in Morocco.
Public medical students, who organize through a national commission of which Mazouni is part, released a list of 14 demands. Describing the state of public medical education, he says, “Students no longer see their future; it’s completely black.”
The availability of residency is one of the students’ central concerns. Private medical students are currently allowed to specialize through residencies in public hospitals, making it nearly impossible for public medical students to complete their residencies and specialize. “The real problem is privatization. We want to protect our rights to access specialization and residency,” says Mazouni.
A student organizer from Fez noted, “We are not against the private students.”
