He rebelled against the exploitation of his country: Who is Muhammad Allal al-Fassi?

He was born in Fez, Morocco. His family descended from the Prophet and raised many famous religious scholars. Allal al-Fassi's father was a doctor of theology and the director of the library of the University of Fez, and his mother was from a well-known Moroccan family. He received a theology degree from the University of Fez in 1930. With his deep knowledge of the field of Islam and his writings on this subject, he became one of the most respected scholars of the Arab world. He defended the nationalist view.

Muhammad Allal al-Fassi (January 10, 1910 – May 13, 1974), was a Moroccan politician, writer, poet and Islamic scholar. He was born in Fes and studied at the University of Al-Qarawiyyin. His father was a Judge (Qadi) as well as his uncle Abdallah Al-Fassi (1871-1930) who was in charge of his education. 

The 1930s were the years when the struggle against colonial rule in Morocco entered a new phase. The 1929 world economic crisis shook the situation of the people, and the poor and middle class were greatly affected by the depression. Fearing that the reaction to the colonial administration would increase, the French Government passed a law to bring the Berbers and Arabs under military control. The protest actions of the local people against this law were suppressed and the leaders of the movement were arrested. Allal al-Fassi was also detained for thirteen months. After his release, he became the chairman of the Moroccan Movement Committee and the National Party, the national bourgeois party founded in 1934.

The Moroccan Movement Committee did not want the abolition of the French colonial administration, but the limitation of its powers, it recommended the establishment of a national parliament and government and the establishment of a well-functioning justice mechanism. In 1937, differences of opinion arose between parties working undercover in Morocco. The National Party, headed by Allal al-Fassi, favored giving all powers to the sultan. The National Action Party, on the other hand, advocated the creation of a parliamentary government. In 1937, large-scale demonstrations were held when the French diverted the waters of the river that runs through the city of Mekne to their lands and left the Muslim farmers without water. The French administration bloodily suppressed these demonstrations. Anyone known to oppose French rule in Morocco was arrested. The Moroccan Action Committee was disbanded. Allal Fasi was exiled to Gabon.

Towards the end of World War II, political life began to revive. In 1943, the Istiklal Party, which was the continuation of the National Party, was founded. The party issued a statement demanding independence and conveyed it to the sultan, the French representative, and the Allies. Upon this incident, party leaders were immediately arrested. The protest movements that took place were bloodily suppressed by the French security forces.

Allal Fâsî, who returned to Morocco from exile in 1946 but could not agree with the notables of the Istiklal Party, was exiled again by Sultan Muhammad V. He traveled to various countries until 1953, explaining the necessity of armed resistance against French rule in Morocco.

After the 2nd World War, the independence movement became widespread and gained strength. There were widespread strikes between 1946 and 1948. Although these strikes were for economic purposes, they also expressed a reaction against the French administration. In the 1950s, the French administration forced Sultan Mohammed V to dissolve the council of ministers. Thereupon, four national parties together with the Istiklal Party established the Moroccan National Front. In 1952, on the fortieth anniversary of colonial rule, widespread demonstrations and strikes were held for independence. In Casablanca, 250 strikers were killed and 5,000 people were arrested as a result of the fire opened by the police. After a short time, the Istiklal Party and the Communist Party, along with their newspapers and magazines, were closed down. However, by 1955, the balance of power in Morocco had changed to the detriment of the colonialists.

An independence treaty was signed with the French in 1956, and soon after the Spanish part of Morocco was also declared independent and the country was united under the rule of Sultan Mohammed V. Allal Fâsî returned to his country and was appointed as a professor at the Rabat Faculty of Law.

In 1959, the Istiklal Party split into two. The majority, representing mostly traditional forces, remained in the party and Allal Fâsî was appointed as the chairman. The new party, which was named the National Association of People's Forces, was taking its power from the intellectuals in the industrial cities.

Upon the death of Mohammed V in 1961, his son Hassan II was replaced. During Hasan's sultanate, Allal Fâsî was the head of Islamic affairs for about a year, and he directed the magazine al-Beyyine. The 1963 elections, which were established that year and the party called the Front for the Establishment of Constitutional Institutions, supported by Hasan II won. The Istiklal Party, which had been in power for a long time, went to the opposition. After this year, Allal Fasi led the opposition to Hasan II.