Gen Z212 – Between Legitimate Anger and Digital Control… Moroccans Face a Test of National Vigilance
Today, Morocco witnesses the birth of a new youth protest movement under the name Gen Z212. The movement was launched amid a tragic backdrop: the deaths of women in public hospitals, which ignited legitimate public outrage among citizens, particularly the youth. The anger is understandable, and the protest against healthcare negligence is a natural right. However, what draws attention is not just the demands but also the organization of the movement and its rapid spread across digital platforms in just a few days.
The first Discord server was created by anonymous accounts and succeeded in gathering over 40,000 to 45,000 active accounts in just ten days. On TikTok, videos carrying the movement’s logo surpassed 5 million views in less than two weeks. The most active cities are Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Fes, and Marrakech, with smaller groups in Agadir and Laayoune. This speed of spread raises questions about the nature of this organization, especially since parts of the digital content feature slogans in English and indirect calls for protests and civil disobedience, which go beyond merely expressing local demands and bear the hallmarks of what is globally known as Astroturfing—attempts to create a fake grassroots movement or steer a real one.
International media coverage has been swift and sympathetic, from CNN and BBC to The Guardian and Washington Post, at a time when larger and more violent movements, such as the Yellow Vests in France, did not receive the same attention. This phenomenon cannot be overlooked, as it indicates that the movement is not just a local protest but has become external media material that can be exploited.
Comparing with Morocco’s recent history makes the picture clearer. The Hirak Rif movement (2016–2019), which erupted after the death of Mohsin Fikri, and the events of Gdeim Izik (2010), which began as a peaceful sit-in demanding decent housing, showed how legitimate public anger can turn into a tool for media and political exploitation. Gen Z212 shares similar characteristics: legitimate local demands and sincere public anger, yet organized extremely quickly on digital platforms, with sometimes incendiary or misleading content, and advanced digital tools.
Clear examples include videos presented as protests in Morocco but actually showing footage from demonstrations abroad, or digitally designed slogans carrying general messages about corruption or poor services, articulated in clear English. This raises questions about the sources and the financial or digital support for the movement, especially since some accounts received anonymous donations in cryptocurrencies.
These events cannot be viewed in isolation from the geopolitical context. Morocco holds a strategic position between the West and the BRICS bloc, maintaining balanced relations with the United States, China, and Russia. Any grassroots movement that could be exploited might serve as a tool for internal destabilization, influence regional policies, or affect Morocco’s interests on the African continent and in the Atlantic Ocean. Concurrently, ongoing sensitivities with Algeria mean that attempts to exploit Moroccan public anger could impact regional balances, especially with major economic projects like the development of ports and transcontinental roads.
Internally, the public demands are clear and legitimate: improving public health services, developing infrastructure, addressing unemployment, and reducing regional disparities. However, the digital path taken by Gen Z212 raises an important question: Can legitimate anger become a tool for digital and geopolitical exploitation? Past experiences teach us that rapid digital organization, massive spread, and sympathetic international media cover can be part of an attempt to steer the movement away from its original demands.
Additional elements call for vigilance: calls for violence in some videos, the use of fabricated content from abroad, precisely crafted digital slogans carrying messages about corruption and social demands, and sometimes the exploitation of the youth’s instinct for digital revolution. All of these are indicators of the potential to transform public anger into an external tool for political influence, as seen in similar movements around the world.
Moroccans today need a dual awareness: to uphold their right to protest and demand reform, and to remain vigilant against any attempts to exploit this anger. Officials also need to maintain direct and transparent communication with citizens to ensure that anger remains a pressure tool for reform and not a tool in international or media conflicts.
Gen Z212 is not just a spontaneous youth movement but a complex mix of local demands and rapid digital anger that could easily transform into a means of guidance or misinformation. History, from the Rif to Gdeim Izik, teaches us that public anger is legitimate, yet fragile and easily exploited if communication, vigilance, and strategic vision are lacking.
Vigilance is required, and close monitoring is essential, for Morocco’s stability, its regional relationships, and its social security cannot be left to digital coincidence or potential external manipulation. All Moroccans, both citizens and officials, must be responsible to ensure that public anger remains a true reform tool, not a means of geopolitical exploitation.
