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RDM

From 1974 onwards, the Moroccan Democratic Regroupment (RDM) succeeded in federating the efforts of self-organization among Maghrebi workers in Belgium. This was a necessary step in defense of economic and political rights, as well as in the struggle for equality and solidarity. By promoting various literacy and anti-racist initiatives, while simultaneously engaging in different forms of public artistic expression, the efforts workers and students organized in the left-wing student union (UNEM) and culminated to the formation of the RDM, bringing together and reinforced a growing internationalist spirit. A solid network was established through mobilizations, including workers' strikes, demonstrations for Palestine, and the well-known hunger strikes for regularization in 1974. The Progressive Front, represented by Mohamed El Baroudi and supported by Farid Mellah, launched a wide-ranging appeal to coordinate actions to defend the interests and rights of Moroccans in Brussels within a Democratic Front. The charter of the grouping was finally adopted on October 12, 1975. The RDM was an entirely self-financed, dynamic organization. Among its emblematic actions was the mobilization against Morocco's decision to stop issuing identity documents at their consulates in Belgium. Additionally, Schools of the Future, homework schools, and spaces for cultural education were structured in five different Brussels municipalities. The group also published a newspaper, "Le Regroupement", hosted a radio program on a free radio station, and organized regular educational programs for adults at the Farid Mellah school. In the artistic sphere, the RDM produced and promoted music, visual art, and theatre collectives such as Oulad El Oummal, Hbab El Ghorba, and Ahl El Hijra. The RDM not only expanded its influence in Belgium but also coordinated actions on the European level, facilitating the creation of the Coordination of Moroccan Democratic Associations in Europe (CADIME). This coalition comprised the RDM for Belgium, the ATMF for France (Association des Travailleurs Marocains en France), the KMAN for Holland (Komitee van Marokkaanse Arbeiders in Nederland), and the MAV for Germany (German-based Vereininung der Marokkanischen Arbeiter). These organizations were closely aligned ideologically and shared the same struggle in defense of human rights in Belgium and Marocco.