Morocco’s selfie king causes online stir

Smiling and relaxed, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI wears a psychedelic T-shirt and jeans as he poses with an admirer in Paris.

It’s a far cry from the traditional pomp of Morocco’s royal court, but pictures of the king casually posing with his subjects are doing the rounds on the social media.

One shot, shared on Facebook on September 1, received 19,000 “likes” in a week.

“We were on a family shopping trip on the Champs Elysees when I saw the king in a 4x4,” wrote “Momo”, an anonymous Facebook user who appears in the picture.

“I called out emotionally — ‘Sidna’ (your majesty). He was kind enough to stop, come and say hello and take my little girl in his arms for a photo.”

In other pictures posted on a dedicated Facebook page, the king talks with a fan in a Paris Saint-Germain football club cap. In another, an admirer in overalls kisses his shoulder in a sign of respect. There is no sign of a bodyguard in the photos, many of which are taken overseas and have the air of casual holiday snaps taken by friends.

The Moroccan royal family have no official pages on the social networking site. But the photos posted on a popular unofficial Facebook page appear to be part of a carefully engineered strategy, said French historian Pierre Vermeren. “These images come from a well thought-out communications policy,” he said. “There’s a clear desire to show how close the king is to his people.” The 53-year-old king’s habit of posing with the public contrasts with his approach to the traditional media, which he keeps at arm’s length. It also marks him out from other heads of state, particularly in the Arab world, who stay behind imposing security barriers.

Judging by comments on the social media, it is a strategy that is working with Moroccans — apart from a few criticisms of the cost of his clothes.