'Your papers, please' must never be heard in America
Morocco's glittering Mawazine international music festival wraps up this weekend with performances by Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz, after nine days of showcasing the North African kingdom's cool factor _ even as dissident Moroccan musicians are imprisoned for their anti-establishment lyrics.
With Shakira and other top international artists performing in open air venues around Morocco's capital _ often for free _ the annual Mawazine world music festival doesn't at first seem like something anyone could dislike.
"A country which puts its artists in prison simply for expressing themselves with their voice or their instruments cannot pretend to support culture," he said. "That's impossible."
He said the Mawazine, which is run by a close confidant of King Mohammed VI, eats up the lion's share of corporate sponsorship so that little is left for other festivals around the country.
