The Years of Lead ( Sanawāt ar-Ruṣāṣ, ) was a period of the rule of King Hassan II of Morocco, from roughly the 1960s through the 1980s, marked by state violence and repression against political dissidents and democracy activists. The coups and protests aimed at overthrowing the authoritarian monarchy the Alaouite dynasty in Morocco and forming a democratic republic that represents the Moroccan people instead. Timeframe Hassan II was king from 1961 until his death in 1999. His reign was marked by political unrest and a heavy-handed government response to criticism and opposition. Political repression increased dramatically upon Hassan's ascent to the throne of the country in 1961, and this repressive political climate would last for nearly three decades. Due to strong popular mobilization from the Moroccan democracy and human rights activists and pressure from the general Moroccan population, as well as pressure from the wider international human rights community. Repression and its victims Political oppression plateaued in the 1960s and wound down only in the early 1990s. During the Years of Lead, dissidents were arrested, executed, tortured, imprisoned or "disappeared", newspapers were closed and books were banned. There are few reliable lists of victims for the time, but there were hundreds of political killings and forced disappearances. Arbitrary arrests and torture affected many, including some of those outside the usual opposition networks. The reports about these human rights issues sparked domestic and international criticism. By the early 1990s, international condemnation of Morocco's poor human rights record became so strong, that Hassan II had no choice but to liberate the country at least somewhat, in order to avoid international isolation and tension with other countries, so that Morocco would avoid becoming a pariah state. As a result, Morocco gradually became more democratic and free over time. Some examples of government repression during this period included: Targeting of dissidents: Opposition politics was a life-threatening activity in Morocco during the low points of the Years of Lead. Harassment of dissidents was commonplace and several outspoken anti-government activists were jailed and tortured or forcibly disappeared by government forces or died mysteriously. Mehdi Ben Barka, founder of the National Union of Popular Forces (UNFP) and leader of the Tricontinental Conference, which was supposed to unite anti-colonialist movements throughout the world independently of Moscow and Washington, "disappeared" in Paris in 1965. This led to the resignation of the prefect of Paris, Maurice Papon. Abraham Serfaty,