Morocco Feb. 20 protest leaders quit after row

Sat Feb 19, 2011 8:57pm GMT

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* Youth movement withdraws from protest planned for Sunday

* Leader cites disagreement with Islamists over monarchy

RABAT, Feb 19 (Reuters) - A Moroccan youth movement that led calls for nationwide protests on Sunday has pulled out because of a disagreement with Islamists and leftists over the role of the monarchy, one of its leaders said.

With two friends, Rachid Antid used Facebook last month to start the Freedom and Democracy Now movement. Thousands of mostly young Moroccans joined it, inspired by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.

Under the umbrella of the 'February 20 Movement for Change', which boasts 19,000 Facebook fans, Antid's group was the first to call for nationwide protests on Sunday to push for constitutional reforms that would reduce King Mohammed's powers and make the justice system more independent.

The Feb. 20 movement also wants to force the 47-year-old monarch to dismiss the government and dissolve parliament.

The banned Islamist Justice and Charity, believed to be the country's biggest opposition force, and leftist parties later announced they would join the protest.

But Antid told Reuters his group was withdrawing from the demonstrations because of differences with those new members. Continued...

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