Ali Idrissi Kaitouni, The «cursed» poet from Hassan II era passed away

Poet, artist, politician and human rights activist, Ali Idrissi Kaitouni died on Wednesday in Casablanca at the age of 58 after suffering from cancer, reports Al Aoual on Thursday.  

Born in Fes on November the 17th 1985, the artist belong to a family of activists who fought for the independence of the Kingdom which marked his entire career, the same source recalls. The deceased participated in several plays and even organized an exhibition in the late 70's before leaving Morocco to Spain and then France.

Once in Morocco, he published a collection of poems entitled «Etincelle», thus marking a new era with power. Seized on the 1st of March 1982, the book about Hassan II was suspended. The author was arrested on 6th of March of the same year and sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 dirham. He spent about 10 years of his sentence, mostly at the Kenitra prison before being released.

Ali Idrissi Kaitouni was considered a political prisoner by Amnesty International. He is one of the founding fathers of the «Movement for Democracy». He is also the founding member of the Moroccan section of Amnesty International and of several committees in support and solidarity with political prisoners. Last March, Liberation reported that he was diagnosed with cancer.