The Movement for the self-determination of Kabylie (MAK; Kabyle: ''Amussu i ufraniman n tmurt n iqbayliyen''; french: Mouvement pour l’autodétermination de la Kabylie, named Movement for the autonomy of Kabylie ( Kabyle: ''Afraniman i Tmurt n Yeqbayliyen''; french: Mouvement pour l'autonomie de la Kabylie before 3 October 2013); is a Kabyle

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

and separatist political organization seeking autonomy, self-determination rights of the

Kabyle people The Kabyle people ( kab, Izwawen or ''Leqbayel'' or ''Iqbayliyen'', ) are a Berber ethnic group indigenous to Kabylia in the north of Algeria, spread across the Atlas Mountains, east of Algiers. They represent the largest Berber-speaking populat ...

, and ultimately independence of the

Kabylie Kabylia ('' Kabyle: Tamurt n Leqbayel'' or ''Iqbayliyen'', meaning "Land of Kabyles", '','' meaning "Land of the Tribes") is a cultural, natural and historical region in northern Algeria and the homeland of the Kabyle people. It is part of th ...

province from

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. It was founded by the Kabyle Berberist

Ferhat Mehenni Ferhat Imazighen Imula, also known as Ferhat Mehenni ( Kabyle: Ferḥat Mehenni or Ferḥat Imazighen Imula, born March 5, 1951), is a an Algerian Kabyle political activist, singer, and founder and first President of the Movement for the Auton ...

, now president of the Provisional Government of Kabylie in exile, after the " Black Spring" disturbances in 2001. Since 2021, the MAK has been classified as a terrorist organisation in Algeria after claims from the Algerian authorities saying that MAK members were planning car bombs. The founder of MAK, Mehenni, is arrested by the French authorities and placed in police custody in 2021 as part of an investigation into organised money laundering in relation to sports betting. In 2011, a close associate of Ferhat Mehenni and a former senior member of the organisation, Idir Djouder, accused the MAK of receiving funds from

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

(250,000 euros per month) and criticised its management methods. Idir Djouder uses the term "dictator", he describes his "government" and the content of the meetings as formal with decisions taken "elsewhere". On August 26, 2021, Algeria issued an international arrest warrant for Ferhat MehenniL’Algérie lance un mandat d’arrêt contre le chef du MAK, Ferhat Mehenni
/ref> On Thursday, May 19, 2022 in Paris, The Kabyle provisional government (Anavad) and the Movement for the self-determination of Kabylia (MAK) presented, the very first draft of the Constitution of what will be the Federal Republic of Kabylia. MAK claims to speak for the

, who express frustration due to the efforts of the

Algerian government Politics of Algeria takes place in a framework of a constitutional semi-presidential republic, whereby the President of Algeria is head of state while the Prime Minister of Algeria is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by th ...

to assimilate the remaining Berber ethnic group minorities into the

Arabized Berber Arabized Berber denotes an inhabitant of the Maghreb region in western North Africa, whose native language is a local dialect of Arabic and whose ethnic origins are Berber. Most populations in the Maghreb are of Berber heritage, including those ...

and

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

majority. The immediate goal of MAK is regional self-determination for the province of Kabylie, which, according to Mehenni, could be the "first step towards a Kabyle, Berber State".

References

External links

"The Other Intifada"

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

report on the MAK
"Autonomy in Kabylia: breaking a taboo"
Discussion of the autonomist movement in Kabylia in general by Professor Salem Chaker.
MAK official website
Algerian democracy movements Berberism in Algeria Berberist political parties Federalist parties Governments in exile Kabylie Liberal parties in Algeria Libertarian parties Nationalist parties in Algeria Organizations designated as terrorist by Algeria {{Berber-stub Berber separatism in North Africa

See also

References

External links