Tourism Secretary Lamia Boutaleb Fires Back at Critics of Her Arabic Skills

After being mocked by news and social media for her shaky Arabic while speaking at a parliamentary session, Minister Delegate in Charge of Tourism Lamia Boutaleb has taken another opportunity to respond to her critics.

On the sidelines of the Autumn University launched by the National Rally of Independents party (RNI) on November 12 in Marrakech, Boutaleb gave an opening speech that subtly knocked those who made fun of her.

“Welcome to those who speak Arabic and those who do not speak Arabic. Welcome everyone. This is Morocco that we are proud of,” said the Secretary of State for Tourism..

In a video from a  parliamentary session held in last May, Boutaleb appeared stuttering and pausing while answering a question in Arabic..

The video stirred a debate on social media. Some questioned the minister’s qualifications, while others brought up about her language skills, speculating that she might not be comfortable in Arabic.

The autumn university, which brought together the youth of the RNI and a total 1,000 participants including leading researchers and party executives, has revolved around the theme “Tolerance between global values and cultural diversity.”

Boutaleb noted that the theme of the meeting represents a  “topic of concern for all.”

“This meeting is an important opportunity to remind the values ??of the Moroccan society and its openness to all, despite all the existing differences,” she added.

The opening session of the university also saw a speech by Rachid Talbi Alami, a member of the political bureau, who also implicitly responded to the mockery of Boutaleb.

“We are experiencing a linguistic violence in the political sphere in Morocco, we have planted a culture dominated by insulting and curbing terms that ignore the presence of others,” said Alami.