Professor S. Chaker's Conference at MIT
By Makhlouf Redjdal
Dr. Salem Chaker, Professor of Amazigh linguistics at the INALCO,
Paris, gave a lecture on Amazigh (Berber) language and political identity in
Algeria at MIT on April 25th, 1995. The lecture was sponsored by ACAA in
collaboration with MIT and attended by ACAA members, members of the Algerian
community in Boston, and professors and researchers in Anthropology
(Barbara Worley), Ethnomusicology (Jane Goodman), and Berber Weaving
(Rosie Colar).
In his talk, Dr. Chaker described the different phases that the Amazigh
cultural movement has undergone since Algeria's independence. He indicated that
the post-independence period was marked by a cultural resistance movement that
operated clandestinely around some intellectuals, such as Mouloud Mammeri in
Algeria, and smaller organizations in France and the Kabylie region. This
situation prevailed mostly because of the repressive atmosphere that
existed under the Pan-Arabic ideology of the unique party led by Ben Bella,
Boumediene, and Chadli respectively.
According to the speaker, the events of April 1980 proved
wrong the historians and the proponents of outre' Arabization in
Algeria. For the first time in the history of the Amazigh revendication
movement, a genuine popular backing emerged and made the so called
"Amazigh question" an element to reckon within the Algerian cultural scene.
Turning to the 1989 political overture and the adoption of a new constitution,
which guaranteed pluralism and freedom, Dr. Chaker mentioned that the Amazigh
revendication witnessed an explosive reactivation at both the cultural and
organizational levels. Longer hours of programming and diversified news flashes
in Kabyle, Shawi, and Mzab took place on the local Kabyle Radio (Chaine II)
and the national TV. In addition, the local press and publishing company (SNED)
exploded with new publications on Amazigh lore and cultural awareness. The
universities of Tizi-Ouzou and Bgayet both created departments for the
Tamazight language.
Dr. Chaker added that, at the organizational level, the country witnessed the
creation of more than a thousand associations whose primary goal was the
teaching of Tamazight. Also, the Mouvement Culturel Berbere (MCB), which
has relentlessly spearheaded the Amazigh movement since 1980, became the
legitimate representative to carry out to term the recognition and
institutionalization of the Amazigh language. Politically, the FFS party
imposed the incorporation of the Amazigh issue in the debate over the
instauration of political pluralism in Algeria (St. Edigio agreement).
In conclusion, Dr. Chaker postulated that for the recognition of the Amazigh
language and culture, interested parties (individuals and organizations)
must agree on a "minimum consensus" focusing on the teaching of the Amazigh
language and the revival of the Amazigh culture. Dr. Chaker urged individually
everyone to make it a personal duty to consolidate and help diffuse the writing
of the Amazigh language.
Note:
The one-hour lecture was given in French. An audiotape of this lecture can be
obtained from ACAA's Cultural Resource Center in Boston.
Solidarity with the Amazigh Cultural
Movement of Algeria
By Y. Djerbib and F. Khendek
On April 29th, members of the Amazigh (Berber) Community in Montreal organized
a march to:
- Express their support for the Amazigh Cultural Movement's struggle for the
official recognition of the Amazigh language (Tamazight) in Algeria.
- Express their solidarity with the school children in Kabylia (Algeria), who
have been boycotting school since September 19, 1994, to demand that
Tamazight be taught in Algerian schools.
- Denounce the attempts of the Algerian government and those of other
Algerian political forces to reduce the Amazigh culture to a folklore.
- Demand that the Algerian government raise the status of Tamazight to
that of an official language in 1995.
About 100 people participated in the demonstration, which took place in
downtown Montreal. The demonstration started at the Carre St-Louis Park and
ended near the Place des Arts, after passing the U.S Consulate and Foreign
Ministry of Canada. The demonstrators exhibited a big Algerian flag and small
yellow (national color of ancient Numidia) flags with the Tifinagh letter Z in
the middle, printed in black, and chanted the following slogans: "Tamazight di
Lakul (Tamazight in schools)," "Tamazight, national language of Algeria,"
"Tamazight, official language of Algeria," "Algeria is Amazigh," "The
history of Algeria did not start in the 7th century," and "Solidarity with the
Kabyle students on strike."
Current Status of Tamazight in
North Africa
By Y. Djerbib and F. Khnedek
At the invitation of the Fondation Communautaire Berbere de Montreal (Berber
Community Foundation in Montreal), Dr. Salem Chaker, professor of Amazigh
linguistics at the INALCO (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations
Orientales) in Paris, gave a public lecture at 2:00 PM on Saturday April 22nd at
UQAM (University of Quebec in Montreal). More than 250 people attended the
lecture which focused on the present status of the Amazigh language in
Algeria and Morocco. The lecture and the subsequent debate lasted
three and a half hours. In the evening, Professor Chaker joined the members
of the Fondation Communautaire Berbere de Montreal and its guests for an
evening of socializing, music, and other cultural activities. On April 20th,
Professor Chaker visited the Linguistics Department of UQAM and met with
several of its faculty.
Professor Chaker holds a Doctorate in Literature with a specialization in
Amazigh linguistics. He is presently a professor of Tamazight at the INALCO
and the head of the "Centre de Recherche Berbere." Previously, he was
a faculty member at the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in
Aix-En-Provence from 1981 till 1989 and at the University of Algiers from
1973 till 1981. He is the author of several books and many Amazigh linguistic
and socio-linguistic studies. Among these publications are:
- Le Systeme Derivationnel Verbal Berbere (dialecte Kabyle), A verbal
Derivational System in Berber, These 3e cycle Linguistique, Universite
Paris V, 1973.
- Un Parler Berbere d'Algerie (Kabylie): Syntaxe, A Berber Language
of Algeria (Kabylia), Edition d'une these de Doctorat d'Etat soutenue en
1978 a l'Universite de Paris V, 1983.
- Textes en Linguistique Berbere, Texts in Berber Linguistics: An
Introduction to the Berber Domain, Paris, CNRS Editions, 1984.
- Etudes Touaregues, Touareg Studies: An Assessment of the Research
in Social Sciences, Aix-en-Provence, Edisud, 1988.
- Imazighen Assa, Berbers Today, Paris, l'Harmattan, 1989.
- Une Decennie d'Etudes Berberes (1980-1990)", A decade of Berber
Studies, Bibliographie critique, Alger, Editions Bouchene, 1993.
Additionally, Professor Chaker is the author of a considerable number
of research articles that have appeared in Algerian, French, Italian and
Quebecois publications. Furthermore, he has been running the "la Chronique
Annuelle des Etudes Berberes," Annual Chronicle of Berber Studies, a
publication of the "l'Annuaire de l'Afrique du Nord" (CNRS), for the last 15
years and is a consultant for Encyclopedie Berbere (Berber Encyclopedia).
Increase American-North African
Interaction
By Raveh Seffal
On June 2nd, ACAA member Raveh Seffal gave a talk at the Association of
International Educators Conference, NAFSA (National Association of Foreign
Student Advisors), in New Orleans. The conference was organized by the Partners
for International Education and Training under a contract of the United
States Agency for International Development Participant Training Program.
The purpose of the talk was to increase communication between Americans and
North Africans by exposing the American public to the multiple
facets of North African cultures, in general, and the Amazigh dimension in
particular. These cultures are often mistakenly viewed as exclusively Middle
Eastern and Arabic by the American media and public.
Preparation for the International
Amazigh Congress
By Rachid Dahmani
On October 29th, 1994 the C.F.P.C.M.A. (Comite de France pour la Preparation du
Congres Mondial Amazigh) was established. This committee was incorporated on
March 22nd, 1995 after its publication in the Journal Officiel de France. Its
incorporation guarantees the legal means that would ensure the success of the
congress. The C.F.P.C.M.A. will prepare for the International Amazigh Congress,
which will bring the struggle for the preservation and the promotion of the
Amazigh identity, heritage, language, and personality to the attention of the
international community. The creation of this committee was the
result of the propositions made during the 17th Film Festival of Douarnenez,
dedicated to the Amazigh people (see the Amazigh Voice V.4, No.1). For the
past seventeen years, this festival has been a forum for the oppressed
minorities of the world to express themselves openly and freely.
The Amazigh congress, which will take place in the summer of 1996, has the
following main objectives:
- Reflecting on the status of the Amazigh issue in
Amazigh-speaking countries and suggesting solutions;
- Participating in the implantation, development, diffusion
and modernization of the Amazigh language;
- Bringing to the international scene, especially to the UNESCO
and the UN, the struggle of the Amazigh people for the preservation
and promotion of their culture, identity, and language;
- Finding the necessary financial means for the realization
of these objectives.
The achievement of these goals will necessitate a cooperation between the
Amazigh people in the native countries and the diaspora. Their common goals
are:
For the native countries:
- Constitutionalization of the Amazigh identity in
each country;
- Constitutionalization and institutionalization of the
Amazigh language;
For the diaspora:
- Work towards the inclusion of Tamazight in the educational system;
- Work towards the recognition of Tamazight as a non-territorial
European language.
A precongress is scheduled for September 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in Paris to prepare
for this congress. The committee and the delegates of each participating country
will discuss the following topics:
- The program of the congress;
- The criteria for eligibility of the participants;
- The human and material means for the realization of this congress;
- The necessary documentation for the congress (international laws on
linguistic rights, constitutions of the countries of origin,
importants texts of Amazigh cultural movements and associations
around the world,...)
Will participate in the congress the native countries Libya, Tunisia, Algeria,
Morocco, Canary Islands, Mauretania, Mali, Niger, and Burkina-Faso and
the diaspora in Europe and America. Quotas have been set for the number of
delegates representing each country according to the size of the
Amazigh-speaking population within that country. Naturally, Algeria and Morocco
have the largest representation with 26 delegates each. Canada and the United
States have been alloted a quota of three each. A delegation of three members,
headed by the former Vice-President, Dr. A. Larbi, will represent ACAA at both
the precongress and the congress.
The estimated total cost of this project is approximately
400,000 FF. The committee is counting on subsidies from international
organizations such as UNESCO and O.N.G. Based on these subsidies, the minimum
contribution of each association is set to 1,000 FF. Also, each delegate will
contribute an additional 1,000 FF to cover board and lodging expenses and the
sponsorship of delegates coming from North Africa.
This ambitious project can be effectively realized only through the
active and united participation of all Imazighen. The committee appeals to the
Amazigh communities to help raise the necessary funds. If you need more
information or would like to help, please contact the C.F.P.C.M.A. at:
9, Rue Croce' Spinelli 75014 Paris, France
Tel: (33)-(1) 43.20.91.60
Fax: (33)-(1) 45.43.35.25
Upcoming Events in Canada and the US
By Y. Djerbib, A. Amezdat, and L. Sellami
The Fondation Communautaire Berbere (Montreal) is planning for the fall a
series of lectures with Dr. Mohamed Arkoun, Dr. Tassadit Titouh-Yacine, and
Mr. Ferhat Mehenni.
Dr. Arkoun is a Professor of History and Islamic Studies at the Sorbonne,
France. In the past few years he has held similar positions at Princeton and
Philadelphia as a visiting Professor. Dr. Arkoun specializes in comparative
studies of religions.
Dr. Tassadit Titouh-Yacine is a Professor of Socio-Anthropology at the Ecole
des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris. She is also the head of the
CERAM (Center for Amazigh studies and Research).
Mr. Ferhat Mehenni is an Amazigh activist and a political singer (formerly
known as Imazighen Imula). He is one of the founding members of the MCB (1980)
and the independent league of human rights in Algeria (1985). Mr. Mehenni
will give a lecture on the present political situation in Algeria and hold
interviews with the media in Quebec. He will also give a concert.
After his visit to Canada around mid-November, Mr. Mehenni will come to
the United States to give a series of lectures, interviews, and concerts. ACAA
would like to arrange for him to speak and perform in Boston, New York,
Washington D.C, New Orleans, Minneapolis, San Francisco, and other places
where the members express the need for it. An initial contact has already been
established with Mr. Mehenni in France and the organizers in Canada.
For ACAA to carry out this momentous project successfully, members in the
various regions need to get organized and look for associations, universities,
and organizations to sponsor these events. Our members in California have
already scheduled interviews on two public radio stations which are
very receptive to the needs and voices of their communities and are a good
means of publicity. They have also started their search for sponsors and have
gotten positive responses from the French Department and the Center of Middle
Eastern Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. They have already
received the cooperation and support of the Cultural Attache at the French
Consulate, and have contacted the Center for African Studies and the
Comparative Literature Department at U. C., Berkeley, and the Alliance
Francaise. Also, members in the New Orleans area have been able to sponsor
Mr. Mehenni's talk through the Africa student association at Tulane University.
A copy of Mehenni's Curriculum Vitae (political and artistic careers) is being
prepared and will be made available to the organizers.
If you are interested in getting involved, please contact your local
representatives. These representatives will work closely with each other
and share information with their local organizers. For additional information
contact the Washington and the California representatives directly or through
Amazigh-net at: Amazigh-net@mail.msen.com