News Center- Militant and unionist women in Morocco have been working for a women’s organization called OFSAF in order to find a solution for women’s issues. The autonomous organization also aims to strengthen union activities. Elif Sinirlioğlu and Samira Rayesse talked about the OFSAF and women’s activities.

Could you introduce yourself to us? Who is Samira?

I am Samira Rayesse and I was born in a wonderful family surrounded by love. I grew up with an education based on love, solidarity, and friendship. Since my childhood, I have dreamed of a world dominated by honor, freedom, democracy, and social equality. I was impressed by some of my teachers who adopted the socialist doctrine in my education life.

After graduating from the university, I faced many problems and then I decided to work for the National Federation of the Agricultural Sector (FNSA) affiliated with the Federation of Trade Union in Morocco.

I first got in contact with the union in 1993 when I met comrade Abdel Hamid Amin, the Secretary-General of the union. He was a man struggling for the rights of female and male workers and he devoted his life to human rights and women’s rights. We still keep in touch with each other. I was first a member of the FNSA, then became a delegate of it and now I am the Deputy Secretary-General of FNSA and a member of the Moroccan Workers' Union (UMT) National Congress. I also served as the Secretary-General of OFSAF, the Organization of Women Working in the Agricultural Sector between 2005 and 2012. I am now the deputy secretary-general of the OFSAF.

We get excited about the organization founded for organizing women in your country. Could you give us some information about the OFSAF? When and why was it founded?

OFSAF was founded on March 5, 1999, as an extension of the National Federation of the Agricultural Sector (FNSA). It had its 5^th Congress on March 8, 2016, with the motto, “with the principle of “Struggle for the human dignity of women in the agriculture and forestry sector as well as their international and national rights.”

The purposes of the OFSAF are;

1. To raise awareness of women working in the agricultural sector about their social and professional conditions and to improve their cultural, legal, and union rights.

2. To be in solidarity with women workers and stand by them through legal means in combating all forms of discrimination, including violence and sexual harassment.

3. To follow the problems faced by women working in the agriculture and forestry sector, and to stand by them to pave the way for their common struggles.

4. To struggle for the realization of the international rights of women living in rural areas and for the development of democracy in these areas.

5. Establishing relationships and working in coordination with women's organizations of all sectors.

6. To work in partnership with the youth working in the agricultural sector and the organizations that carry out works for the youth.

7. To determine a joint road map in cooperation with the national and international feminist organization in order to found a progressive democratic feminist movement.

Who can be a member of the OFSAF? Can women working in other sectors are members of the OFSAF?

Women working in the agriculture and forestry sector can be members of the OFSAF. Basically, our source of income comes from female workers in the agricultural sector: particularly, female agricultural laborers, women working in the agriculture sector, students studying in agriculture and forestry sectors.

Could you tell us about your activities? Could you talk about your working methods?

OFSAF organizes the following activities;

-Training coursesfor women workers and employees

- Celebrating International Women’s Day every year with the participation of women working in the agriculture and forestry sectors

-Organizing meeting with the authorities according to the needs of sectors

- Organizing training courses on the occasion of the International Day of Rural Women annually celebrated on October 15

-Organizing training courses on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on November 25.

-Preparing reports on the conditions of women working in the agriculture and food sectors

-Supporting women facing violence and harassment in the sector

-Collaborating with other feminist organizations working on women's issues.

What can you tell us about the general situation of the Moroccan working class and the place of women workers in this situation?

The general situation of the Moroccan working class is similar to the current situation of working-class all around the world, particularly in the context of the social, economic, and cultural consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In many sectors employing women workers, many companies were closed down and workers lost their jobs.

How is your relationship with other women’s organizations? Are there similar women’s unions in other sectors?

We have carried out our works in cooperation with local and sectoral organizations of the Federation of Trade Union in Morocco and surely we are in solidarity with the Moroccan Progressive Women's Union. We organize training courses, congresses, and actions together.

We are also in cooperation with various international organizations such as DISK (the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey), KVINFO (the Danish Center for Research on Women and Gender) and FNV.

We are a component of the International Women's March and I am the coordinator of it in Morocco.  

Do you want to send a message to women workers in Turkey?

I have great respect for women in Turkey. I had the chance to meet many great militants from DISK such as Nebile Irmak. First of all, I embrace the women of Turkey with the warmest regards, and as a result of the inequalities created by the imperialist and patriarchal regime, we struggle under almost similar conditions. We have a common reason to struggle against these attacks together.

Long Live Women in Turkey

Long Live Moroccan Women

Long Live Our Solidarity

Source: www.kadinisci.org