Lakota Sioux Declare Independence From US,

“This is an historic day for our Lakota people,” declared Russell Means, Itacan of Lakota. “United States colonial rule is at its end!”

“Political activist Russell Means, a founder of the American Indian Movement, says he and other members of Lakota tribes have renounced treaties and are withdrawing from the United States.
“We are now a free country and independent of the United States of America,” Means said in a telephone interview. “This is all completely legal.”
Means said a Lakota delegation on Monday delivered a statement of “unilateral withdrawal” from the United States to the U.S. State Department in Washington.
The State Department did not respond. “That’ll take some time,” Means said.Meanwhile, the delegation has delivered copies of the letter to the embassies of Bolivia, Venezuela, Chile and South Africa. “We’re asking for recognition,” Means said, adding that Ireland and East Timor are “very interested” in the declaration.Other countries will get copies of the same declaration, which Means said also would be delivered to the United Nations and to state and county governments covered by treaties, including treaties signed in 1851 and 1868. “We’re willing to negotiate with any American political entity,” Means said.” (Read mo+ read comments)

Sources:
Common Dreams (dot org).
Press Release: 19 December 2007

Official website

The Story of Staff..

Bali now…
UFNCCC negotiations about the climate change face challenges of all kinds... consumer industry and the counter attacks of global corporations. Clean environment just does not work for everybody. There are certain pockets, I mean people, who just do not care.
I think we all know how we all got here and how dangerous it is to live in this planet now and how worse it is getting every minute.
Annie Leonard tries to make the lesson more real. She is talking to a US audience but it is interesting to see what she has to say and how she does say it.
Click here to watch the video.
Annie Leonard is an expert in international sustainability and environmental health issues, with more than 20 years of experience investigating factories and dumps around the world. Coordinator of the Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption, a funder collaborative working for a sustainable and just world, Annie communicates worldwide about the impact of consumerism and materialism on global economies and international health. (read more)
Watch Teazer:

Jaque derida on writing...

Other meanings for culture

This is Mola Sylla, a Senegalese singer accompanied by a group of musicians from Armenia, Iran and Romania. A west African voice that challenges the limitations of local scales and fles above them to meet all the airs that the Mediterranean can provide.
this is another meaning for culture (to the best of sounds). sharing and collaboration in creating an art that transcends the boundaries of culture and nation states...
enjoy

[source: newsounds.nl]

Moha: Amazigh blogs presentation

Moha* Arehal, from Ait Negh Blog , was the speaker today in a presentation given at the Institute for Amazigh Culture in Rabat (IRCAM). The Topic of the presentation wan Amazigh Cyber Activism. Moha touched upon different issues and questions of Tamazight and the internet , what is a blog, blogging ethics and blogging for social change, moroccan blogs (Blogma) and the place of Amazigh blogs in the world of pixels.
He talked to Academicians, professors and policy makers commonly used to reading their morning news papers in the offices with their café noir … and also people who are interested in alternative media.

This is a little synopsis of the presentation:
In Absence of reliable sources of information, Imazighen have weaved many ways through internet to make themselves heard and connected. The importance of ethics and committed Bloging where posts can be criticized, corrected, commented upon, in an open and civilized way which a lot of other media would not allow.
“ we learn a lot more from people who think we are wrong than those who agree with us” says Moha “ that is listening to the difference in opinion and integrating it in ones work . Not going out looking for lies to get to a false equilibrium. It is allowing people the right to say their opinion when they think you are wrong”

The most important principles for the success of Bloging is transparency and observing ethics, integrity, commitment, and honesty in a world where anonymity and independence, as internet allows, do not keep you away form your duties as a blogger. Human issues are more than personal.
Finally the academic some of the academic institutes are opening up and considering that online cyber activism can work. Bogging for Tamazight is one of many ways of acting but it is going to maybe become the fastest and the most efficient way.

--------------

*Moha: stands as one of the most prominent Amazigh activists in Morocco. writer,blogger, journalist, rural engineer, lecturer, political analyst, hydrologist, desert lover, ... to name a few . He writes for many Moroccan News papers. Le Monde Amazigh is one of them.

Web: [ Blog negh..]

Morocco: a country of marvels

Press Code Reforms...

The latest approach to Morocco Press Freedom is technocratically called : reform.
The new government is taking press freedom seriously !!. One of many things that were left in the hands of the “past” government, as they walked out of the Ambassadors' Gate, was Media, Press, Censorship, detentions of journalists...

Maghreb Arab Press, MAP, the walking stick of this all governments, said:

Rabat, Oct. 24 - Morocco is determined to amend the Press Code and to gather the legal texts governing this field into one Act, Prime Minister, Abbas El Fassi assured Wednesday before the House of Representatives.
The government, he said in the statement of the new government's program, will see to the practice of the freedom of the press - within the total respect of the law - and introduce new mechanisms, such as the National Council of the Press, due to play a key role in the implementation of the professional rules.
The PM also affirmed that the government will erect communication as a major instrument for the construction of a democratic and modern society, as declared by the monarch back in 2004 when he said that the reform of the media is a prerequisite for improving the political scene.

MAP published this information under the rubric of culture !]

I hope these words will stay fresh in the heads of the new hires, the brand new government.They sound great (the words). but even if i really try to put my skepticism in a jar an through it out in the ocean, i would always think that

Inerview with Gobal Voices

Lucky Dube is no more !

One the most famous and the most peaceful artists of South Africa, Lucky Dube, 43 was gunned down in front of his two kids by some gangster carjackers. He was driving in the outskirts of Johannesburg yesterday.
Reggae music admirers, fans and musicians as well as people in his town are still under shock. He left seven children. The youngest of them, Melokuhle, is only three months.
Lucky Dube was a freedom fighter, a social justice activist.. a complete and mature African artist. He sang and danced for the poor and the oppressed Africans. His songs educated a lot of people for generations. He was censured and imprisoned.. but struggled and gained an international renomé and inspired people…
It is outrageous that he gets killed by a bunch of gangsters hired to steal cars to make little money when the rest goes to the big ones...
BBC reported reactions of people protesting against the violence and crimes that take more than 50 lives everyday in south Africa.
it's the way it is.. one of my favorite Dube songs.

The Photo that threw me off

Photography has always been a fascinating art and a great expression that can go beyond the boundaries of verbs. Some photos as just eternally beautiful (like this one) and they teach us constantly about ourselves and the world round us. transmitting the message of beauty would be one of many goals of photography. This is a photo of a photographer. It is the cover picture of a photo book or a coffee table book as known among designers, where the photographer is preparing herself for the shot.
This is a horrible photo....!!! (ps)
I almost fell off my chair.I want to go and get lost in the desert and never come back again. Looking at this picture and reading the "reviews" wrote on the web site of Amazon dot com, I almost fainted.. hen the comments…!!
Lalla Mira, please help... Jjawi , some fasukh ( insense) or anything.
I just… please have a look.

(my apologies to your eyes... i just wanted to share)

Peace and global warming

Al Gore is a man from warm places!
He is interested in Politics, global warming and the area in between...
Al Gore’s movie Inconvenient Truth which won Academy Award(s) is a Documentary film about global warming and climate change.
Nobel Committee pronounced the Nobel Peace Prize this year goes to HIM and to the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) equally ( fifti-fifti) for their jobs in showing humans how they messed up with their universe.
This is official Nobel Committee statement:

“for their [winners] efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change" (more).

Miranda Devine of the Sydney Morning Herald writes beyond the glamours of the event and tries to answer some "warm" questions like:

“Since Al Gore was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize you might have been wondering what global warming had to do with peace...” (read more).

The conversation is still going on.. may be heating up soon. watch out.

Che, Abdelkrim and Imam

Forty years ago Che Guevara was assassinated..today he is still alive..\
he shared the legend with Adelkrim and Sheik imam.

They all shared the love for freedom. They said it out loud. They fought for it.
Who could have guessed that the most iconic figure of “people’s liberation”, Che Guevara, would be a humble student of Abdelkrim Khattabi the engineer of the Rifan revolution in the 1920s. Che would have wished he me this mentor in the Rif but… They met in Cairo (1959) where Abdelkrim was exiled. During one of the meetings Guevara was reported to have spent many hours talking to Abdelkrin, his Guerillaro Mualim.

le 14 juin 1959, à l'ambassade du Maroc au Caire. “Abdallah Ibrahim a présenté Che Guevara à Abdelkrim Khattabi, alors en exil au Caire. Puis Guevara et Khattabi se sont isolés au fond du jardin de l'ambassade pour une conversation de plusieurs heures sur l'expérience de la guerre du Rif”. (Telqulel)

Che visited Morocco many times in private and by invitation from the first socialist government of morocco. A story told Telquel (Fr) sheds the light on the different layers of Che’s experience in morocco and how he got arrested by the Moroccan police before the Prime Minister Abdellah Ibrahim goes himself to liberate him from Balima Hotel/jail and takes him to a private residence.

The Egyptian exile of Abdelkrim did never prevent him from sharing his knowledge with all the movements of liberation in through t the world as well as his experiences: the battle of Anwal to the declaration of the first Republic of the Rif to the lost hopes in the communist parties of France and Spain. In His book La question berbere.. , Ammar Ouerdane generously gives an a account of these relationships. In fact, Tangier was the international city that hosted different diplomatic and business communities right there on the Riffan coasts. Non of these were ready to recognize the new Riffan Republic then, although promises of had flooded after Anwal (1921) was won by Abdelkrim and his companions.

Egypt was the classroom where Abdelkrim would teach the knowledge and the experience of a movement of liberation and a republic that did not last too long.

It is the same classroom where Sheikh Imam sang for freedom and for the poor for decades before he had to live his own country. he sang for the poor and for all those who fought for them.

“Guevara Mat” ( Guevara died , Video) is one of his most famous songs written by Ahmed Fouad Najm, his companion and comrade. (lyrics Ar.) .

These are the three icons that are still inspiring the world and reminding everyone that a better world can be possible regardless of the corporate iconism.

Omaar re-discovers Spain

Rageh Omaar, former BBC journalist goes in a journey he called a look at what "impact Muslims had on European art, science and philosophy."
What interests me personally in all of this is the question. The presence or absence of the old Moors ( berbers) in the historical discourse devised both by Europeans and Arab muslims is a different area of investigations that has to wait a little more. However, Rageh Omaar tries to educate his fellow Europeans about facts like the bridge was not really that wide.

Now they want our votes...2

Translation from Tamazight:
Speaker 1: From Tilmi Protests.

"Greeting to you Tmazighen and Timazighin,
We agreed on this action before the elections. Nobody should be telling you that young people are bringing us here. We agreed to do this before 2007. we know our tamara (misery).. we see it and we understand what is going on. We are doing this and we prepared it, from little ones to the elders… we were preparing this since 2006.

We are glad that 2007 came.. so you can come and talk to us!!. before that you just did not care about us. There was a flooding, there were no trucks, no roads no relief nothing. There is no Amazigh TV channel for us to understand what you say to us. do you think we know what that thing you call the constitution really means? We are just here.. we do not understand anything you say.
We agreed today from Abudjam to Ait Attou … we do not know what is the constitution we do not know what is democracy… all we want is roads and health care… we want places where our women can get help.. you have never known us.. now that for the sake elections you are bringing all your army up her to us.
We are all dead in here. But if we have die for our Tamazight that is alright. This is us from time long ago. If you want to arrest us, take us. do it. actually death is better than this kind of life we are leading here. We come to the health ceter and it is empty. If our kids get sick we them to the pharmacy who sells anything to us. We want roads, we want health center…."

Now they want our votes...

Voices of People of Tilmi.(see map) People had to boycott the elections till Makhzen recognizes their presence… their existence.
"I am glad you are waking up.. we do not belong nowhere.. now they want our votes… nobody came during the floods...", said one of the women speakers. Video by Asekka

Larger Map

BWM: Blond While Moroccan

“This is the little blonde girl the world desperately hoped was Madeleine McCann.” (!!) Says The Daily Mirror.
Bouchra, 3 year old Berber Rifian, ‘was seen’ by a tourist who was driving across Rif Mountains She might have been Maddy who disappeared a few months ago.
I feel for her family and hope they find her soon... But the photo taken by the Spanish tourist deserves more than a little stop...
It is really a shame and a pity that little Bouchra and her family are harassed by media and authorities just because she “might” have looked like another European person. Her family was called by the authorities. Her parents had to prove she was their daughter. I find this really strange, for lack a better word.
I wonder if the same acts of harassment would happen if “another Maddy-like blond little girl” is 'seen' in any places in Rural Alzas, Basque, Arizona, or Wales.

El Fassi From Larbi.org to the present.

Abbas El Fassi prime minister as part of the puzzle unfolds. what is next?
His resignation for example. What does Si Larbi* think now?

*Larbi is one of the greatest influential bloggers from Morocco. One of the 100 people that move morocco (100 qui font bouger le Maroc), Telquel Magazine. Summer 2007.

Electioned-out

Almost two weeks after the Moroccan elections, Caféman*, my friend, says there are still great amounts of colored paper on the streets of Rabat. Indelible ink on thumbs and forefingers of voters has gone or not depending on the amount of water and chemicals used. and Soap, sabone beldi, javel, lghessal...
The king has already 'met' the big 6 and the next government is cooking in a big pot; The Makhzanian pot. And only Allah and people close enough to his ceiling know what is going to happen. I mean the names that are going to be mentioned the most on the Moroccan TV for the next five years. Other than that it looks like they want us to hold our breath
most Moroccans are already electioned out. There is so much said abut the elections that we think something miraculous is going to happen in a hitchkock-ian fashion. Now we are still trapped in the suspense. The thing is walu (nothing) is going to happen.
There are lots of files left open for the next government.it looks like. Thousands of unresolved issues. Water, land, forests, corruption, roads, health, Tamazight .. u zid u zid (etc). I would not want to be the next Prime minister unless I really have things I want to do for myself first and I do not care about Morocco. I would not want to deal with all the problems (for lack of a better word) left behind some cheap reformists like USFP. I would not want to cover the pit holes and collect garbage and bones after dogs feast. The outgoing government has not done much. (please remind me if there is something to give them credit for..walu ! I can’t find anything) This is how “elecioned out” you can be.
Caféman thinks about his numbers trying to revive his numerology memories. He said:

"It has been a great year i think,

• 2007, add it up 2+7 that’s 9.. like adding up these dates 72, 81, 90, 99 (9+9=>1+8=9) it is history, you know !
• 63 percent of people who ‘ditched’ the ballots.. that also adds up as 9. it is 3 and 6.
  
• We Moroccans do not like number like 6 and 66. We say “66 kshifa”. ( 66 hurdles, difficulties), it nogood staff...
  
• The king Mohamed 6 met 6 of them already last week.. there is a link between all of that and 9.
  
• “zid 6 3la 60” ( ad 6 to 60) when things refuse to get better and problems add up.
• ...

Conclusion: 9 and 6 are just numbers.. that’s 15. one person five more years but it is a 6.
See you guys. do not waste your time thinking about solutions. It is all about the 6.
caféman is good man"

* imaginary friend.. works for the municipality... cleans streets.. in Rabat

Post Script: Setta u dama. ( i do not how to translate this one) [right number is 3 tlata not 6 Setta, Mohamed El Kortbi of Partageons nos passions. see comments...

Kabyle tunes

UN General Assembly Backs Indigenous Peoples' Rights

The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted a non-binding declaration upholding the human, land and resources rights of the world's 370 million indigenous people, brushing off opposition from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.

The vote in the assembly was 143 in favor and four against. Eleven countries, including Russia and Colombia, abstained.

The declaration, capping more than 20 years of debate at the United Nations, also recognizes the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination and sets global human rights standards for them.

It states that native peoples have the right "to the recognition, observance and enforcement of treaties" concluded with states or their successors.

Indigenous peoples say their lands and territories are endangered by such threats as mineral extraction, logging, environmental contamination, privatization and development projects, classification of lands as protected areas or game reserves and use of genetically modified seeds and technology.

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, the Philippine chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, joined UN chief Ban Ki-moon in hailing the vote.

"It marks a major victory for Indigenous peoples," said Tauli-Corpuz, adding that the document "sets the minimum international standards for the protection and promotion of the rights" of native peoples.

But Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United States, countries with sizable indigenous populations, expressed disappointment with the text.

They said they could not support it because of their concerns over provisions on self-determination, land and resources rights and giving indigenous peoples a right of veto over national legislation and state management of resources.

"Unfortunately, the provisions in the Declaration on lands, territories and resources are overly broad, unclear, and capable of a wide variety of interpretations, discounting the need to recognize a range of rights over land and possibly putting into question matters that have been settled by treaty," Canada's UN Ambassador John McNee told the assembly.

Among contentious issues was one article saying "states shall give legal recognition and protection" to lands, territories and resources traditionally "owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired" by indigenous peoples.

Another bone of contention was an article upholding native peoples' right to "redress by means that can include restitution or when not possible just, fair and equitable compensation, for their lands and resources "which have been confiscated, taken, occupied, used or damaged without their free, prior ad informed consent".

Opponents also objected to one provision requiring states "to consult and cooperate in good faith with the indigenous peoples ...to obtain their free and informed consent prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources, particularly in connection with the development, utilization or exploitation of mineral, water or other resources."

Indigenous advocates note that most of the world's remaining natural resources - minerals, freshwater, potential energy sources - are found within indigenous peoples' territories.

A leader of Canada's native community, Phil Fontaine, slammed his government's stance.

"We're very disappointed with Canada's opposition to the declaration on indigenous peoples," said Fontaine, leader of Assembly of First Nations, who came to New York to lobby for adoption of the text.

Canada's indigenous population is about 1.3 million people, out of a total population of 32.7 million.

Adoption of the declaration by the assembly had been deferred late last year at the behest of African countries led by Namibia, which raised objections about language on self-determination and the definition of "indigenous" people.

The Africans were won over after co-sponsors amended an article to read that "nothing in the declaration may be ...construed as authorizing or encouraging any action which would dismember or impair, totally or in part, the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign and independent states."

The declaration was endorsed by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council last year.

Source: truthout.org.

By Gerard Aziakou, AFP--13/09/2007

Painting: Khadija Hassi Labiad. Watercolor, Bouba.

Tamazight Studies project

Finally a department of Tamazight is going to shoof (see) the light.
A small department at the University of Ibn Zohr in Agadir.
This is a dream for a lot of Amazigh students and Intellectuals. The Moroccan department of Ed and IRCAM are the two institutions that might provide the oversight.
According to the official speak, this is part of a bigger project aiming at “integration of Tamazight in the Moroccan national education system". The Amazigh dept is going to be neighbors with Arabic, French, English, history and geography and the famous department of Islamic Studies.
The theory behind creating this department practically is to solve the immediate needs for Amazigh professionals in the field of education. It also seems that a four year experience of teaching Tamazight in elementary schools did not meet the great expectations of many people although there is no real evaluations of this project.
My friends who are school teachers always complained about the need for more trainings. They are not really given anytime to teach. 45 minutes a week in not enough. However, more kids now read and write in Tamazight than some older people who never had a chance to study it. ( illiteracy !?)
A wide majority of people speak 'about' Tamazight in other languages like French and English (which I am doing here right now !!) but there are also great Amazigh brains out there that can do a lot for their culture and language. some of them have joined IRCAM for that purpose and I am sure more are going to join the University if they are not there already. scattered in other departments.
The kind of research that has been done before was a little awkward. Amazigh linguistics, for instance, happens in every department. People write in every language except in Tamazight. Now it is time. three years, six semester and a lot of papers to get a ‘License’ (BA) then a year for a Metrise then gradate studies, which we are not yet talking about.
The stone that Tamazight officials are standing on right now is the support of the Moroccan king himself. IRCAM runs on a budget drawn from the king’s personal money. And this is what most Amazigh activists find shwiya iffy. Now Ibn Zohe has a department and it looks like this is what people were fighting for a really long time….
We will wait and see how this is going to unfold.
On the way there we are not talking about "autonomist inclinations". ! Azul.

(photo ref souss.com)

Breaking News: Tamazight

>>>>Tamazight at the university of Agadir.
A new department opened finally at the School of Letters andHumanities at Ibn Zohr University.
Read more. more in souss.com (Fr)

One Question Interview with Eatbees:

I tried to gather some courage for this question for ‘almost’ a year now to ask Eatbees if there is a story behind the name he has chosen for his blog. Now I did it. but first, I found out about Eatbees last October. I g****ed Morocco blogs. Followed some blue links. A first post came up… like this:

“I’m writing to you from Asheville, North Carolina. This blog will deal with politics, religion and culture, and the intersections among the three. The hidden fourth subject is technology, because that is what enables us to communicate in this way.” (Sept 10, 06)

After a while I thought.. this is a different blog.. . I realized that Eatbees pulls out all the meanings attached to words like democracy, Human rights, morocco, Iran, technology, photography… and engages his readers in a deep reflective and intellectual effort round them. He is still crafting his words carefully sharing the passion and love for countries like Morocco.. in attempt to rebuild the puzzles of culture and socio-economics without getting trapped in the usual paradigms of western academic superiority.

“In fact, the reason I write a blog is because I want to communicate with other people in order to learn from them!
At first I was timid to share my feelings about Morocco if I thought they were controversial, because I was afraid the "real" Moroccans might say, "Who are you anyway to be giving your opinion? You don't understand anything about this." But no one reacted that way, so I've become more sure of myself over time because the rest of you are helping me out!

How did “Eatbees” become name or a title for your blog?

This isn't the first time I've been asked this. The fact is, the name "eatbees" has been around a lot longer than the blog. Originally, eatbees.com was a collective website with a few friends, and when we started it, I asked them all for ideas for the name. Our favorite was dontblink.com, but that was already taken, so we settled on eatbees.com as our second choice. I'm the one who thought of it, and I'm not sure where it came from. I was looking for a name people wouldn't forget easily.
It's true that I love bees and see them as a model for many good qualities, such as industriousness and working together. I've read that bees were a symbol of wisdom in the ancient Middle East. They are vital for agriculture, and Einstein once said that if bees ever disappeared from the Earth, humans would have only four years left to live! I have a fantasy of raising bees as an old man, maybe in Chefchaouen. They produce honey which is good for the health, but when you want to eat it, sometimes the bees get in the way. Maybe that's where the name "eatbees" comes from. If you want to taste the honey, you've got to feel the sting!

Shoukran Eatbees.

Best Eatbees Clickables:
Eatbees earned the award of Thinking Bloggers.
Browse www.eatbees.com for more writings and photos.
The photo project Morocco, a Cruel Country
eatbees blog header photo. All the picture. (Bees on glass, the whole glass)

Favorite Eatbees quote (one of)

“To understand Morocco, it is necessary to spend time in bus stations at strange hours of the night.”
( from half-crazy desperations)

Meknes for example...

I heard the sigh ( and e-sigh) of relief after the election results from almost every one I know ...
May be people are losing trust in the big heads. Meknassi people, for instance, have not voted for Ssi Mohamed Al Achaari, the present minister of Cultural Affairs. known as one of the Moroccan intellectuals, poets...etc. Born in moulay Idriss Zarhoune (shay llah). He was president of the Moroccan Writers Union for a very long time. Amazigh writers and journalists know him very well (insert). He lost his seat in the parliament where he “sat” for two terms representing the communities of Zarhoune for a two terms.
The other person is Nouzha Chakrouni (bio, Fr). Who does not know here. Very nice women. Moved on the Moroccan cabinet from minister in charge of cooperation, social affairs and disabilities to Moroccan Community Living Abroad, MRE. People did not vote for her.. wili hshouma, lalla Nesha looses her seat.
“I feel for her, meskina.” said Café-man in a phone conversation today. “She is the most drifa person in the whole cabinet. At least she was very approachable during the election campaign. She talked to every one. Well all of them do that and you never see them again, ever after.”
She was a devout USFP “activist” head of the Meknes list. One of the strongest women in the Moroccan government. She had not been very successful in putting the MRE council to work although she had been traveling all over the place… (at the expenses of Moroccan tax payers). She really wanted to continue doing her politics… but no luck.
Lmuhim, the surprises were great and again we think it is a great time for change. But in my opinions nothing really is going to move as long as more than 60% of Moroccans are saying: “ la 3afek, I do not want to vote and I do not want to talk about it”.
This is the word.

What is New in 2007 elections.

Abdelhay Moudden ,political science professor at MoV university,
answers questions of differences and proximity for aljazeera.
what's new in the 2007 elections?

Amarg Fusion: the music

amarg fusion

a break from lpolitka !!
this is a real great Amazigh music . the song 'Sawel a Rrays' is a real gift.
I will post more links if people are interested.
good luck every one.
(Mouss, Tanemirt atas. Tudert i tmazight)

One day after the Blog day:

These are.. the blogs I found very lately. One word they all share: We can talk about it.
1- Red jenny: On indigenous peoples. very nice and pleasant to read.
2-Desert Rock blog: “Remember, we still live in the shadow of Enron”, issues of water and displacement.
3-Tusna Inw: Again what happens when you write about it..
4-Blog des hommes libres: Blogging the Imazighen.
5-The Mostly Water Collective is an autonomous body based in "Canada". Our purpose is to aid in the creation of a free society, a world with freedom of expression and freedom from want, a world without oppression, where power is shared equally. We do this by providing communication resources to allies engaged in struggles against capitalism and other forms of oppression.

These guys do not afford the time to be “snarky” about it.. the intellectual luxury of verbiage and lhedra lkhawya.

Imazighen Bycott L'vot

Students and Amazigh activists call for boycotting September 7^th elections in Morocco; protesting against the gov’s detaining Amazigh students in Universities of Errachidia, Meknes, taza, Agadir... And also protesting against the “economic embargo” the Moroccan regime forced on the South East region.(this is on the Goulmima side)
For Imazighen this is more then just a protest..
It does not make any sense to vote in a structure that does not recognize you as a voter. What I mean by that is there is difference between voting and offering your vote to further ignore you. Fhemti?
There is a feeling among some of Moroccans that if you do not vote, you are ‘throwing your voice away’ instead of using it ‘to make a change’ which is totally true for those who know their voice is going to be heard.

This might sound cynical and too nihilistic for those who can not think outside the box, i mean a Bernsteinian box, but voting or not voting makes no difference as long as the Moroccan constitution is still the same. This is a constitution that does not recognize the Amazigh people’s rights. This is not a simple question of social identity or “diversity”, as some people like to call it, This is a question of universal right to exist in your language, cultural Identity, land…etc.

The Moroccan government is still denying people the right to have Amazigh names for their kids. Well it is the same government that is privatizing water and forests, selling public companies and lands to international corporations, and doing all sorts of things to oppress people.
That is why a lot of Imazighen want constitutional reforms first. They want a constitution that would cover their political action when “politics hot the fan” and therefore they are speaking against cheep rhetorics of the government as in “your vote is your voice”.
That what the boycott means. It also means that ma lot of people are saying: “no thank you, I pass…”

From amazigh.org

Driss Basri dies again,

Driss Basri dies..,
Condolences to his family.
Moroccans believe they should not say bad things about their deads and we should follow some the great teachings that say “Mention only good things about your dead”. High levels of Moroccan forgiveness… things that do not always work. But Driss Basri had done tremendous amounts of atrocious things to his follow Moroccans.. There is nothing really good to mention… stp.

Morocco elections ...

The View from the boxes.

The ‘electoral’ campaign, al 7amla, started… it is the fever (!) all over the place.

If you are a national bourgeois, a ‘nouvaux riche’, or an arrivist who wants to secure a spot in the crowd among the big ones, this is your chance. You can also be a ‘good soul’ who wants to do something great for your country.. a dreamer of democracy.. good luck with that. you will have to struggle a lot… it is a mess and you do not want to touch it… ttisa3 rbi3.

Many events took place in a short period of time. Mayor of Rabat arrested for corruption and pre-election campaign. A huge caliber minister in the Department of interior, Fouad Ali Alhema, one of the closest friends of the king Mohamed 6 ‘quits’ his job to become a barlamani (MP) of Skhour Rhamna; maybe something bigger later. This gentleman does not seem to want any affiliation with political parties. Maybe, he likes to stand above and beyond. Many political parties are tossing accusations to each other about transgressions and corruption. The election race has began.

However, young Moroccans did not stop thinking and reflecting about it all.

In Amazigh Blog, Amanar illustrates the last scenes by posing the question:

“what is new in 2007? Personally, if is have to sum it all in one word, I would say Nothing… democracy? Since long time ago, I have stopped trusting the Moroccan politics especially when it comes to ballot boxes.. to vote or not to vote; what difference is that going to make since it is always the same people who get elected”

Amanar states that morocco is a workshop for democracy . “We are on the right track” he says. “ it is better to criticize than stay quit”

I think a lot of young Moroccans are convinced that voting is not the right way to engage in politics. Many have a different ways of looking at this game. The general approach is “be33ed men lebla la yeblik” ( get away ).

There is also a long list of politicians who have always been there and many young Moroccans are a little fed up to say the least. Ange Bleu posts pictures of some old famous politicians.

“these men have occupied the political scene since the independence. The youngest of them is…76 years old. They are real dinosaurs… these guys have done nothing for morocco during all the period of its independence. Now they are coming back. Gentelmen: Yazghi, Osman, Aherdane, Yassine, Fassi, rradi, Amsil El Alaoui: ouffffff we are tired of you… go away. We need educated young people with new ideas and new project”

Ditti with Ange Bleu…

Most of these senior politicians lived during the independence movement times (40s-50s) and think they have the historical legitimacy to act as politicians and run the country.

they would not trust the country to “kids”. Now things have changed, I hope, and Moroccan “pprocess of democracy” has been hanging out to dry for a long time. Nothing has changed, I guess. Who does not know Mahoubi Aherdan. The big one at the MNP and the transhumant politician. He occupied all kinds of jobs and used Tamazight for his own politics. Now his son is in the same part doing the same things. In the parliament and beyond. He even moved a little ahead to become some sort of president for a shadow World Amazigh Congress, that did not survive the real AWC.

It is time for all the political parties to try their skills in selling and buying votes. This is a situation that did not please the king (read speech). He said what sounded like people should not sell their votes and should not sell themselves.

This democracy is a little joke. I noticed there are many illusions about some western democracies as being a dream for our country. people say we are not yet there. we have to work hard to get democracy that we want. And this is a very one sided approach to democracy which otherwise looks like a drop by drop system where Moroccans have to deserve it to get it. We have to graduate to that level where we can be handed democracy by some power. And this is what some people in morocco are angry about. These views are perpetuated by politicians, schools, some journalists, instititions, some bloggers,
Democracy is not just voting for people who promise you things. Democracy is not an end in itself and it should not be. it is a way, a means, makina dyal lbolitika , a plural approach to socioeconomics where people decide what is good for them. all people regardless their differences (the verbiage for a definition should be longer and more precise but is do not care about deffinitins now)
altought our friend Youssef “cuts 100 words” by sharing a quote by M. Soubhi, (Egyptian comedian)

“la démocratie c’ est te permettre de choisir le moyen qui te plait pour réaliser ce dont j’ai envi” (Democracy is to allow you the choice of the means you like to do what I want).

Wa Kul intikhab wa antum bekhir.

My sacred ego

Kids do not cry:

The governor of our region visited my village when I was in fifth grade to appoint a new Qaid.

Every one lines up. All the men. Villagers and nomads from everywhere. All of them were happy to receive the governor. A great man in a black suit. The new Qaid was there behind him receiving welcomes from every single person. gnawa were playing and dancing. Great times. I was in the front row with the older ones when the cars stopped. I had never seen that much traffic in my life. More than ten cars, most of them were black cars. The man stepped out of the car and walked towards the crowd that shouted. “3ash almalik” ( long life to the king). I did not like the confusion but I was focused on the man walking towards me, us. I did not care much about the others behind him. they were his followers I think. I shook the governors hand...
His hand was soft, which was a little disappointing to me, but he was gentle and spoke Moroccan Arabic to me. In my village everybody’s hands were harsh and firm and they spoke Amazigh.
He said: “how are you?... and what is your name?”. Our neighbor responded and said I was well and he said my mane. That was very rude too intrusive. I knew how to say my name and I spoke Moroccan Arabic. Everybody knows how to say ‘ labas and lhamdullah’. But I was not happy with the guy taking my words. And denying me right to peak and say my things only because he thinks he was alder and maybe bigger.
I moved my small body out of the line in disappointment then I tried again. I run a head and sneaked between two giant men again and waited for the governor so i can say and say “ labas , lhamdullah” if I needed to.
He finally arrived still shaking people’s hands and saying things older guys always say.Still hearing shouts about the king every now and then. Women yuyu-ing in the background. He came. He shook my hand. He looked me in the eye and he said. “labas a weldi” I said “ abas lhamdullah”, then he said “ llah yerdi alik” ( bless you) . I did not care about the blessing. What mattered for was that I did it. Nobody interrupted me. I was myself. I felt as big as the giant men on both my sides. I understood later that I was the only person in e crowed that the governor bowed for. I was big.
Like all the kids. It is vital for me to say things myself.
I run to the village and told them that I shook the governor’s hand. I did not say two times because the first time did not matter to me. I learned how to deal with authority and power abuse. Well age abuse. My size mattered… the size I decided is the size that was.

Book happens

Remembering a book I ‘ started to read’ a few years ago.. I do not know.. but I lost it on the train to Marrakech. Very fascinating book. “The Tattooed Map” listed as the first novel of Barbara Hodgson, a Vancouver artist and a writer. it is a travel journal about two characters, Lydia and Chris, who chose Morocco as a destination for one of many of their adventures:

I am embarking on what I hope will be another successful journey. I am alone, but I doubt that my companion shares my anticipations. We’ve traveled together many times before, Christopher and I, and on every trip I’ve had the sensation that the two of us have wandered—always together—to very different places.

The story that sounded like a regular chronology of “Tour du Maroc” was starting to get strange as Lydia noticed a tattoo of a map appeared on her arm. The map got bigger and covered all her body.

She disappears afterwards and Chris tries to find her. he finds her journal in a café place in Marrakech and finishes writing the second part of what came to be a great novel.

Chris finds the journal... I feel asleep and we were already close to Benguerir ( 70 Kilometers away form Marrakech).

Ladies and gentleman.. the train enters la gare de Marrakech. Terminus, les voyageur a destination de ….” Everyone stood up. Got out of the train. I did. Never saw the book again. never finished it.

But the sketches on the book, the photos, the doodles and all the margins stayed in my head for a long time...

I was not sure I agreed with everything but as B. Hodgson herself says:

“I think everyone has their own Morocco, whether it be their backyard or another country,"

Every one has their morocco that they cherish, or not. Lydia had a Morocco tattooed on her skin.. she had the whole world to appreciate with some life in it. She did not have a Marrakech that she owned or any other place.. she preferred to disappear instead of having to face a world that was leading her to accept deceit and terror. She wanted to perpetuate the images she has about a deteriorating world.

Details can be disappointing at times when their threads fall into holes of despair. Like the despair of محمود المسعدي Mahmoud Messaadi, a Tunisian writer and Activist who wrote حدث ابو هريرة قال Abu Hurayra in 1939. Abu Hurayra wakes up in the morning not wanting to do his daily rituals. He refused any further commitment to Allah. embarks in a journey into the “unknown” (if you want to call it, I don’t). His travels to desert, monasteries, and into himself.

A journey of a man who holds the name of one of the most renown figures in the history of Islam.. a friend of the prophet Mohamed. One of the ten people who were promised heaven. Mahmoud said once, “we don’t die till the end of the story”. But Abu Hurayra did not die. he disappeared.

The end of Abu Hurayra is the end of discovering “his own map”. . the grid of truthfulness that leads to an evaluation of meaning. A step ahead from the semantics of a reality where maps mean something more than the first person singular where most western knowledge is trapped.

Lkamikaz d meknes

Hicham Doukkali is a 28 years old Moroccan engineer working for the finance department in Meknes. Found a job through the struggle of the Moroccan association of unemployed university graduates .. blows himself up near the door of a tourist bus in a public plaza in Meknes..
Place Lahdim, known for its legendary murals and big arched gates built by workers and Maalems during the reign of the Alaouite king Moulay Ismail. Now a photo stops. Tourist buses stop before going other destinations for a few minutes to take pictures on their way to Volubilis or Fes.
Doukkali’s attempt brings all the questions back.. "what the @#&# is going on in people’s heads?. What is their motivation? It is not definitely hanger and thirst. These guys are not protesting individual miseries. They are not desperate for food, which was the idea behind redesigning Sidi Moumen after the attacks of 5/16th where more than 42 people were killed. This is a person with high education, employed with a good salary and a good social status. He wanted to blow himself inside a bus but he could not get in as the driver closed the doors.
i am sure we are all bedazzled by this stupid act. It is just beyond my head. I cant understand this rising culture of destruction and self destruction. I can’t help thinking that it is so hard to think that some realistic analysis can be done to understand the hidden reasons behind the suicidal tendencies of this people who want to take as many lives as they can with them.
this is a foreign mentality officially created in the seventies and earlier than that to counter balance the communists and all the red staff… and the western iron curtain.
It developed as an imperialist tool against freedom of speech and all that.
It is high time we sat down and examined our selves, our school systems, our Moroccaness and all the crap we have learned about why things do not work.
I do not care if these people think there is a heaven they aspire for by doing this. I do not want to go to a heaven where everyone has killed someone. If killing takes anyone to Heaven, guess who are the people who are going to meet there… who killers Iraqis, Palestinians, Touaregs, New Yorkers, Afghanis, tootsies, Native Americans, …
However we are all encouraged as Moroccans to think seriously about the meaning of our religious ideologies to understand that all this Is not about wanting to be good to Allah, it is beyond that… terrorism shapes development more than any academic theories. The politics of this New Order speak the language of fire and blood.
Yet I am not understanding how any person can be indoctrinated enough to kill.
And I do not think I will understand it... ever.
(photo AFP)