Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on March 12, 2020

German NGO PixelHelper, known for attempting to buildNorth Africas first Holocaust Memorialin Morocco, announced that it was ordered to seize its activities in Ait Faska and leave the country.

Speaking to Yabiladi, Wednesday, the founder and president of the NGO Oliver Bienkowski said that the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent on March 4 a letter to the Ait Faska-based association demanding its departure.

Denouncing the decision, delivered by the German embassy in Rabat on the same day, Bienkowski said that he is planning to bring the case to court.

The guerilla-activist, who has been living in Morocco since 2014, said that he rejects the expulsion decision. I have a three-year rent contract in addition to a purchase option for the Ait Faska property, he added.

We want to rebuild our canned bread bakery, bring investors and supporters from all over the world to Ait Faska and there is no reason for us to be expelled, the activist argued.

Linking the current decision to the Holocaust Memorial destroyed by the authorities in August for not having the needed permits, Bienkowski insisted that the PixleHelper facility in Ait Faska housed art, promising to bring to court videos proving that the association has nothing to do with Zionist activities.

Art installations to help locals in Ait Faska

On the same token, the German activist denounced the fact that he has not received yet [his] a residence permit, even though [he] has a 3-year lease contract and a company in Marrakech with all requirements to get an investor visa.

For the record, the NGOs property in Ait Faska made headlines earlier this year after its founder announced that he was building a memorial to honor Jews who died in concentration camps, including the ones who belonged to the LGBTQ+ community.

Following this announcement, the local authorities, who said that the German artist and activist did not have the permits needed for such venues, demolished PixelHelpers Holocaust memorial.

In 2019, Bienkowski tried to defend his art installations in Ait Faska after he was accused of spreading Israeli propaganda. Disappointed by the voices that linked hiswork to Israel and Zionism, the Kassel-native stressed that his organization has nothing to do with that.

Bienkowski stressed his works and campaigns are meant to defend minorities and several causes in several parts of the world, including Uyghurs, Palestinians, migrants and Jews detained in the concentration camps.

More here:
Holocaust Memorial : Ordered to leave Morocco, PixelHelper resists expulsion - Yabiladi in English

Category: Zionism
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