A group of activists of the ethnic Berbers have embarked on a campaign among their Imazighan fellowmen crusading for a referendum for a self-rule under the Algerian central government’s “diplomatic and military authority.”
In a gathering organized by the activists in the village of Ilisheen, 120 kilometers south of the capital, they said that solving the problem of the Berber, who prefer to call themselves Imazighans would be impossible unless they are granted autonomy.
Self-rule, they said, would give the minority authority to run their local affairs, without being seperated from their mother country.
Berbers and other indigenous north African communities make up about a third of Algeria's population of 31 million, have long resented perceived cultural discrimination and daily contends with housing shortages, a declining standard of living and an unemployment rate of 30 percent.
Ethnic Berbers have said they were fed up with the Algerian government’s Arabization policies, which they feel have left their culture side lined. Language remains a flash point, despite the introduction of Berber language in schools in 1999, activistes are still outraged by lawmaker’s attempts to make arabic the country’s official language.
Riots that have erupted in the recent months in the Berber areas and the capital Algeria have led to the death of more than 80 persons, according to independent sources – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
