West German-Moroccan Relations and Politics of Labour Migration, 1958–1972

Abstract

In 1962, the Federal Republic of Germany (frg) agreed to negotiate a guestworker agreement with Morocco in order to create guidelines for handling 4,000 so-called illegal Moroccan migrants, most of whom lived in North Rhine-Westphalia. Unlike other guestworker agreements, this one was not about recruitment, but rather it was designed to restrict migration from Morocco, legalise the stay of Moroccans already in the country, and establish guidelines for future deportations. Looking at the history of the West German-Moroccan Agreement from its start until its termination in 1973, this article provides a discussion of Moroccan labourers access to and legal status in West Germany, demonstrating how international and economic interests as well as cultural stereotypes of both Moroccans and Arabs shaped West German migration policies. In so doing, the article emphasises the West German federal and the North Rhine-Westphalian state governments’ different goals, revealing that the West German government was not a monolithic entity; it was in fact defined by multiple, sometimes contradictory, viewpoints and pressures.