Morocco Debates Eid al-Adha Celebration Amid Rising Costs and Social Media Calls for Cancellation

The hashtag #CancelEidAlAdha has emerged on social media to call for the cancellation of the Eid al-Adha celebration due to the high cost of living. According to consumer protection associations, the prices of sacrificed sheep and goats are expected to increase significantly compared to last year, reports Morocco World News. This dizzying increase could have a negative impact on the purchasing power of the average Moroccan. The successive years of drought that have affected domestic production and the depletion of livestock during the pandemic - when ewes giving birth were slaughtered - are at the origin of this expected increase. Considering that the purchase of a sacrificial animal is only a "sunna" (tradition) in Islam, these associations argue that those who cannot afford it should not feel obliged to do so.

In 1963, the late King Hassan II had canceled the sacrifice ritual due to the "sand war" between Morocco and Algeria. This conflict had undermined the country’s economic situation. In 1981, the same decision had been made due to a severe drought that hit the kingdom and led to the death of a large part of the livestock. The celebration of Eid al-Adha had been canceled in 1996, also due to successive waves of severe droughts that culminated in 1995, a year declared by the government as a national disaster.

The hashtag #CancelEidAlAdha is not well received by other Moroccans. They consider it an affront to religion. According to them, only scholars have the power to issue fatwas on established traditions and obligations. Claiming that these annual protests were the work of a lobby composed of large livestock brokers, playing on the sensitive chord of religion with simple people, they suspect that Algerian electronic flies are behind the hashtag. Their intention would be to destabilize the situation in Morocco as part of the ongoing electronic war between the two countries. "The cancellation of Eid al-Adha has major religious, social and economic repercussions," commented Mustapha Benhamza, president of the Regional Scientific Council of the Oriental. He added: "It is not permissible to accept abandoning the Sunna (tradition) in Islam, and if it is not possible for a person to perform the rite, then God does not burden a soul beyond its capacity."

Faced with the high cost of living, the Moroccan government has taken measures to ensure an adequate supply of sacrificial animals. Mohamed Sadiki, the Minister of Agriculture, has meanwhile announced that about 3 million heads of sheep and goats have been reserved for Eid al-Adha, with identification and monitoring measures in place since March 2024. In parallel, the government of Aziz Akhannouch has temporarily opened imports to increase supply and stabilize prices. Thirty-four temporary markets dedicated to Eid al-Adha sacrifices have been created and equipped throughout the kingdom to complement the existing markets.