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Halima Embarek Warzazi is a Moroccan diplomat with the longest-running career in the United Nations. The Casablanca-native dedicated her life to the cause of women in Morocco and in the United States.
Warzazi’s exciting journey as a diplomat started when she 14 years old. Daughter of a Casablanca businessman, the young woman was sent to Egypt to study in a French school. She spent ten years in the North African country, where she attended the Cairo University.
In 1957, Warzazi graduated with a «bachelor's degree in literature», recalled history professor Emmanuel Kwaku Akyeampong in his book «Dictionary of African Biography» (OUP USA, 2012). While in the Egyptian capital, the Moroccan student was lucky enough to rub shoulders with Moroccan nationalist leader Abdelkhalek Torres, who was a friend of her father.
Becoming a female diplomat
Upon her graduation, Torres, who was at the time serving as Morocco’s ambassador to Egypt, threw her a party, celebrating her success. «The elegant way in which Torres welcomed and mingled with his guests helped her to realize that she wanted to pursue a career as a diplomat», wrote Akyeampong.
Since then, the idea of becoming a diplomat never left Warzazi’s mind. Despite her father’s opposition, the young woman rushed into «secretly» applying for a job at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs once she joined the Kingdom.
Halima Embarek Warzazi was hired by the Ministry, but as the fourth secretary, «the lowest position within the department», the same source added. In Rabat and as an employee at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Warzazi realized that being a working woman in the diplomatic field was a challenge more than an achievement.
According to the «Dictionary of African Biography», when Warzazi joined the Ministry she was one of the three women who worked in the department. «They were seen as intruders», explained the same book, recalling that this «mindset led to the nick-name ‘daddy’s daughters’ given to her by her male coworkers, who found it difficult to understand why a wealthy woman would also wish to be a working woman».
From Rabat to Washington
But this mentality, that governed Morocco in the 1950s, did not stop Warzazi from trying to realize her ambitions. A tragic event paved the way for her future career in Washington. In 1959, Warzazi and her fiancé, Abderrahman Anegay, who was the director of the royal cabinet of King Mohammed V, had a car accident.
Her fiancé, who was nominated at the same year as Morocco’s ambassador to Washington, died in the accident. «After her release from the hospital, she met with King Mohammed V and seized the opportunity to ask him if she could replace her deceased fiancé in his diplomatic post», wrote Akyeampong, adding that the King agreed.
By 1959, Halima Embarek Warzazi became the first female Moroccan Cultural Attaché at the Kingdom’s embassy in Washington. In the United States, Warzazi’s ambitions saw the light in 1961 in a reception, held by the Moroccan delegation at the United Nations General Assembly.
During this reception, Abdellah Ibrahim who was head of the Moroccan delegation in the UN, named Warzazi as a member of the delegation. The diplomat was assigned to the UN’s Third Committee, which was quite marginalized at the time.
Women in the UN and patrialism
In the UN, Warzazi felt discouraged by the behavior of some of her colleagues. «He peers within the UN Moroccan delegation treated with partialism», explained the dictionary. In one of her speeches, Warzazi recalled these feelings, stressing that she was disappointed to see that women were marginalized.
«When I joined the committee, I was surprised by the overwhelming majority of men», she said.
In 1961, Warzazi was forced to return to Morocco after she got married to Morocco’s Consul General in New York. In the Kingdom, the Casablanca-native was assigned to several positions at the Moroccan administration, but continued with her fight for human rights and the struggle of women and equality.
According to the same source, Warzazi had a keen interest in voicing women’s issues and enabling them to speak about themselves. Warzazi argued that women must address their own issues at the parliament, through equal membership.
She has even suggested a «quota system as a viable solution that would enable people to become acquainted with seeing women not only in the parliament but also in political decision-making positions in general».
In 1965, Warzazi felt like she had to strengthen her presence in the UN. Unbeknown to her superiors in Rabat, the diplomat applied for the vice presidency of the UN Third Committee and she won. In New York, her career flourished and she held several positions.
In 1973, she was nominated to the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Ministries as an expert member of the UN Special Commission Against Apartheid and Racial Discrimination. She was also Special Rapporteur of the Sub-Commission on Exploitation of Labor through Illicit and Clandestine Trafficking.
In the 1980s, Warzazi was mandated to study traditional practices affecting the health of women and children and she presented a report on the issue, focusing on a tribe in Thailand. In 2003, the UN diplomat was elected head of the UN Advisory Committee of Human Rights.
In Morocco, and after a long journey in New York, Warzazi was named by King Mohammed VI as a member of the Advisory Council of Human Rights. Her journey as a diplomat is still ongoing, giving hope to young women and girls who wish to embark on similar careers.
