CONTROLLED TRANSITION AND AUTHORITARIAN CONSTITUTIONALISM IN MOROCCO (2011-2025)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21783/rei.v11i3.927Keywords:
Institutionalized Authoritarianism, Authoritarian Constitutionalism, Controlled Transition, Neo-Institutionalism, Arab Spring, Executive Monarchy, MoroccoAbstract
This article analyses the gap between formal constitutional design and actual institutional behaviour in Morocco following the adoption of the 2011 Constitution in the context of the Arab Spring. Through the analysis of specific cases such as the management of the 20-F Movement demands, the 2016-2017 governmental crisis, the Rif Hirak (2016-2018), the 2018 economic boycott, and diplomatic normalization with Israel (2020), it demonstrates how formal institutions have been instrumentalized to perpetuate authoritarian structures under a democratic facade. The study is grounded in the theoretical framework of neo-institutionalism and hybrid authoritarianism, developing the concepts of "controlled transition" and "institutionalized authoritarianism" as analytical categories to understand authoritarian survival strategies in contexts subject to democratizing pressures. The analysis reveals the paradox of reform without change, where apparently liberalizing institutional modifications paradoxically reinforce monarchical control. The Moroccan case evidences the specificities of contemporary Arab monarchical authoritarianism and its sophisticated mechanisms of institutional adaptation.
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