**This is the first of a two-part series covering the Kabyle-Algerian conflict. The second part will deal with specific allegations of genocide by the Kabyle government in exile against the Algerian state and the petitions it has filed with two tribunals. ~~~ While wildfires occur almost every year in Algeria …
Read More »Right-wing French candidate Zemmour praises Morocco’s former ban on foreign names
Far-right French presidential candidate Eric Zemmour, who wants to ban Muslim names in France, hailed an outdated Moroccan ban on foreign names as “a great idea”. Zemmour said he changed his Moroccan birth name to Eric for ‘love of France’ [Getty] Right-wing French presidential candidate Eric Zemmour on Thursday applauded …
Read More »A long battle for acceptance for Morocco’s Amazigh community
For decades, Morocco’s Amazigh community has advocated for official recognition of the new year as an official paid holiday, a symbolic recognition of the indigenous identity they hope to gain under the leadership of Amazigh Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch. Every year, Morocco’s Amazigh community is on hot coals ahead of …
Read More »Will Libya adopt a federal or non-centralized constitution?
Episode 36 of the Al-Ad Al-Aksi program series (The Countdown) addressed the most appropriate constitutional dossier for the Libyan status quo, Libyan wealth and the way it is managed in all Libyan regions. , in addition to the issue of which groups boycotted the drafting of the constitution when it …
Read More »“Chant Amazigh” Brings Modern Traditional Sound of Majid Soula to New Listeners
CHARACTERISTICS “Chant Amazigh” Brings Modern Traditional Sound of Majid Soula to New Listeners By Saby Reyes-Kulkarni December 08, 2021 “Every time I set out to write a love song,” explains Majid Soula, speaking through a translator on a Zoom call, “it unfortunately turns into a song about justice. in place.” …
Read More »Two Algerian ministries stop the use of French in official relations
Quick news Amid mounting tensions with France, Algerian ministries are asking staff to use the Arabic language in official correspondence. People hold a sign and Algerian flags during a rally to commemorate the brutal crackdown on an October 17, 1961 demonstration near the Pont Neuf on October 17, 2021 in …
Read More »Two Algerian ministries end use of French in official correspondence – Middle East Monitor
Two Algerian ministries have decided to end their use of the French language in official correspondence in light of growing tensions between Algiers and Paris, Anadolu News Agency reports. On Thursday, the Algerian Ministry of Vocational Training issued a circular on behalf of the minister, Yassin Merapi, asking staff to …
Read More »The misfortune of words in Morocco highlights the larger struggle for Lin …
(MENAFN – Syndication Bureau) AFP Photo: Abdelhak Senna The new school year will start in Morocco next Tuesday. This year, unlike previous ones, schools will be able to teach certain subjects in French rather than Arabic, the usual language of instruction. In universities, where the language of instruction is French, …
Read More »Stateless ethnic minorities in Libya and the upcoming elections | Elections News
Libyan expectations are high and candidates are starting to express their interest in running in the elections scheduled for December of this year. These were delayed for three years following a military campaign in the capital Tripoli by the renegade government of military commander Khalifa Haftar, based in Tobruk in …
Read More »Stateless ethnic minorities in Libya and the upcoming elections
Libyan expectations are high and candidates are starting to express their interest in running in the elections scheduled for December of this year. These were delayed for three years following a military campaign in the capital Tripoli by the renegade government of military commander Khalifa Haftar, based in Tobruk in …
Read More »Berbers celebrate 20 years of “Black Spring” demonstrations in Algeria
Algiers (AFP) Twenty years ago, the death of an Algerian teenager in custody in the heart of the Berber minority in the North African country sparked an uprising that helped pave the way for future protests. Massinissa Guermah, a high school student, was hit by a hail of bullets on …
Read More »Who’s who in North Africa, by Arezki Metref (Le Monde diplomatique
A pilgrim at the El-Jammaa Oufella (‘upper mosque’) in the Djurdjura mountains, eastern Kabylia, July 2015 Farouk Batiche AFP Getty There is often the confusion over Algerians, Arabs, Berbers and Kabyles. An Algerian is an Algerian national, independent since 1962, regardless of the ethnolinguistic group to which he belongs. A …
Read More »A new dawn for the Amazigh cause
This newcomer formed an alliance at the end of 2020 with two political parties that are members of the government majority, the National Rally of Independents (RNI) and the Popular Movement (deputy). Under the leadership of these two political groups, activists of the Amazigh movement are preparing to participate in …
Read More »Marginalized Indigenous Peoples of North Africa
The Berbers are the descendants of the pre-Arab populations of all of North Africa, from the far west of Egypt to the countries of the Maghreb. The Berbers, who refer to themselves as the Amazighs meaning “free man”, have been fighting for a long time for greater recognition of their …
Read More »In Algeria, online repression targets Amazigh protesters active in the Hirak movement Global Voices
Protesters wave the Algerian flag and an Amazigh flag in Tizi Ouzou, Algeria. Photo by Kader Houali, used with permission. On a Friday morning in late summer 2019, a lone woman marched through central Algiers, walked past a row of police officers and called out loud for the deposition of …
Read More »Algeria jails protesters for waving Berber flags – Middle East Monitor
An Algerian court yesterday sentenced 21 protesters to six months in prison for “undermining national unity”, local media reported. The court’s verdict included a six-month suspended prison sentence for protesters arrested for hoisting a flag representing the country’s Berber minority, Algerian press service (APS) noted. About ten million Berbers live …
Read More »Berber language heard but not seen in the oasis of Siwa
In the far northwest of Egypt, just 59 kilometers east of the Libyan border and some 350 miles (560 kilometers) from the Nile Valley, the Siwa Oasis is one of the regions the most remote in the country. An agricultural land famous for its dates and olives, the oasis has …
Read More »Algeria: 41 people arrested for carrying the Amazigh flag as authorities crack down on freedom of expression
Algerian authorities are stepping up their crackdown on peaceful protesters, arresting 41 people in recent days for raising the flag of the Amazigh community during protests across the country or simply for having it in their possession, Amnesty International said in posting. details of the arrests ahead of new protests …
Read More »Morocco adopts law confirming Berber as official language
Moroccan lawmakers unanimously approved a bill that confirms the official status of the Berber language, eight years after its preliminary recognition in a new constitution. The new law is designed to cement the use of Berber – alongside Arabic – by government administration, local authorities, public services, schools and in …
Read More »Morocco weighs heavily on French science education |
CASABLANCA – The question of teaching scientific subjects in foreign languages is dividing politicians and intellectuals in Morocco where the public education sector is in crisis despite the reforms. A bill which would regulate the education sector and which was adopted by the Council of Ministers in mid-2018 was blocked …
Read More »Moroccan Berber language Tamazight could join Google translate – General news
RABAT – A petition on the Avaaz online campaign community website has put the Tamazight Berber language in the spotlight, and the language, which is already recognized by the iPhone, can now be included in Google translate. The association “La Rando”, which launched the petition, estimates that Tamazight is spoken …
Read More »The state of Amazigh culture in Algeria and Morocco
Originally from North Africa, the Amazigh people, sometimes known as Berbers, have spent decades fighting for cultural recognition in the predominantly Arab region. For years, Amazigh activists have engaged in a battle against oppressive policies while trying to promote measures that would help preserve Amazigh identity. Despite recent successes, however, …
Read More »Amazighs of Morocco push for official recognition of their new year | Arts and culture
The rally marks the continued efforts of the Amazigh identity movement to gain recognition from the government. Hundreds of people gathered in Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to mark the start of the Amazigh New Year with a sit-in, calling on the state to make the celebration a national day. …
Read More »Fears of a “language war” in Algeria over the status of Tamazight | Lamine Ghanmi
TUNIS – Berber students from the mountainous Kabylia region of Algeria have left school to protest the government’s neglect of their mother tongue, Tamazight. The protests began on October 22 at a high school in Beni-Zmenzer, 15 km south of Tizi Ouzou, the main town of Kabylia, and spread to …
Read More »Bill paves way for Amazigh language academy
ALGERIA Algeria approved a bill paving the way for the creation of an Amazigh language academy dedicated to teaching and promoting research on Tamazight, as well as its standardization. “This is a historic decision and a breakthrough which completes the process of rehabilitation of Tamazight, opening up considerable prospects for …
Read More »Algerian Berbers demonstrate for Tamazight language rights | News from the Berbers
Berber communities in Algeria are asking the government to allocate public funds to promote and preserve their indigenous language, a request that has sparked several protests in the northern region of the country this week. The protests come after an amendment to the 2018 budget legislation that would have formalized …
Read More »Not Arab, and proud of it – Foreign Policy
At first glance, nothing in the 25-year-old Tunisian musician Abdelhak Mahrouk distinguishes him. He has a serious but unkempt demeanor, eyes splayed and downcast, and a messy mop of black hair that reaches the top of a slightly twisted widow. His wispy goatee makes him look young for his age. …
Read More »Who are the Amazighs of Egypt? – Al-Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East
CAIRO – Visitors to the Siwa oasis quickly notice the friendliness of the people who welcome them. With warm smiles, the residents of the oasis take pride in showing visitors their cultural heritage and traditions. Unlike many other parts of Egypt, the Siwa Oasis, located 50 kilometers (31 miles) east …
Read More »The Berber language: officially recognized, unofficially marginalized?
Ten years after Tamazight – the language of the Amazigh, the country’s Berber population – began to be taught in schools here, and four years after it was constitutionally recognized as an official language, it is still unclear how it will be integrated into education. The recognition of Tamazight has …
Read More »An unlikely celebration of North Africa’s ethnic diversity | Opinions
On January 12, a group of cars and vans filled with rowdy, flag-waving Amazigh activists left Algiers and began a three-day tour of seven Algerian provinces, under the slogan of âYennayer, feast of national solidarityâ. Before departure, the “Yennayer caravan” received an Algerian flag and best wishes from Mounia Meslem, …
Read More »Berber protesters force their way into Libyan parliament
TRIPOLI: Members of Libya’s ethnic Berber minority broke into the parliament building in Tripoli yesterday, smashing windows and destroying furniture, during a protest demanding greater recognition, a spokesman said of the assembly. The protest took place during a break in a regular assembly session, General National Congress spokesman Omar Hmaiden …
Read More »After centuries of oppression, Libyan minority sees hope in fall of Gaddafi
The original inhabitants of North Africa, the Amazighs (also known as Berbers) may have finally won the freedom to observe their culture – if they can convince the Arab majority to follow them. Graffiti reading “Freedom fighters from Dahra district in Tripoli”, on the right, and a Berber logo on …
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