Black Spring (Kabylie)
Encyclopedia
The Black Spring was a series of violent disturbances and political demonstrations by Kabylian Berber
activists in the Kabylia region of Algeria
in 2001, which were met by repressive police
measures and became a potent symbol of Kabylian discontent with the national government. The protests took place against a backdrop of long-standing cultural marginalization of the Highlander Kabylian, a homogeneous Berber linguistic group in Algeria (Berber speakers form some 25% - 35% of the total population, although exact numbers are disputed) despite the most rigid governmnet-sponsored Arabization
measures of the 1960s through 80s having been lifted. The name "Black Spring" alludes to the events known as the Berber Spring
of the 1980s, in which mainly Kabylian civil society activists challenged the ban on Berber culture then in place, demanding cultural rights and democracy.
, was arrested by Algeria
n gendarmes
and later died inside the gendarmerie
. This provoked large-scale riot
s in the Kabylian region, that lasted for months.
President
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
's government claimed that the real name of Massinissa was in fact Karim and that he was a jobless criminal aged 26. Several months after these statements, the government admitted that his real name was in fact Massinissa (named after the historical Berber king of ancient Algeria
), and that he was an innocent high school student. The Minister of the Interior Yazid Zerhouni
said that he "was badly informed". No apologies were given to the victim's family, however, and the riots did not stop. Bouteflika's government maintained that the Kabylians were being "manipulated by a foreign hand".
A march that brought many tens of thousands of Kabylians into the capital, Algiers
, was organized by the Arouch movement, which along with the autonomist MAK sprang from the civil activism surrounding the disturbances. The demonstration was followed by confrontations between the local population of Algiers and the demonstrating Kabylians. The police
sided with the "Algérois" and state television thanked "les Algérois for having defended their town from the invaders". Since then, public marches in Algiers are prohibited.
As of April 2002, the Algerian Human Rights League reports 90 Kabylians killed, 5000 wounded of which 200 have become permanently disabled, and thousands of arrests, bad treatment, torture and arbitrary detentions.
At the end of the black spring events, the Algerian press reports 126 Kabylians killed, and thousands were severely injured in the riots, or tortured by the Gendarmery paramilitaries.
were withdrawn from Kabylia, and the Berber language, (Tamazight), was made a "national language" in the Algerian constitution (but not an "official" language, on par with Arabic
).
The traditional Berber political parties
, Saïd Sadi
's Liberal
Rally for Culture and Democracy
(RCD) and Hocine Aït Ahmed
's Socialist
Front of Socialist Forces
(FFS), were partly marginalized by the radical grass-roots activism and violent forms of protest. Instead, new movements rose to the fore in Kabylian politics: the Arush (Arouch) movement and the Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylia (MAK), whose regionalist
ambitions for autonomy
marked a new evolution in Kabylian politics.
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
activists in the Kabylia region of Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
in 2001, which were met by repressive police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
measures and became a potent symbol of Kabylian discontent with the national government. The protests took place against a backdrop of long-standing cultural marginalization of the Highlander Kabylian, a homogeneous Berber linguistic group in Algeria (Berber speakers form some 25% - 35% of the total population, although exact numbers are disputed) despite the most rigid governmnet-sponsored Arabization
Arabization
Arabization or Arabisation describes a growing cultural influence on a non-Arab area that gradually changes into one that speaks Arabic and/or incorporates Arab culture...
measures of the 1960s through 80s having been lifted. The name "Black Spring" alludes to the events known as the Berber Spring
Berber Spring
The Berber Spring was a period of political protest and civil activism in 1980 claiming recognition of the Berber identity and language in Algeria with events mainly taking place in Kabylia and Algiers...
of the 1980s, in which mainly Kabylian civil society activists challenged the ban on Berber culture then in place, demanding cultural rights and democracy.
The events
In 2001, a young Kabylian student, Guermah MassinissaMasinissa Guermah
Massinissa Guermah was a 19-year-old Kabyle high school student arrested by Algerian gendarmes on 18 April 2001...
, was arrested by Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n gendarmes
Gendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
and later died inside the gendarmerie
Gendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
. This provoked large-scale riot
Riot
A riot is a form of civil disorder characterized often by what is thought of as disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against authority, property or people. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are thought to be typically chaotic and...
s in the Kabylian region, that lasted for months.
President
President of Algeria
The President of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Algerian armed forces.-History of the office:...
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
's government claimed that the real name of Massinissa was in fact Karim and that he was a jobless criminal aged 26. Several months after these statements, the government admitted that his real name was in fact Massinissa (named after the historical Berber king of ancient Algeria
Masinissa
Masinissa — also spelled Massinissa and Massena — was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of ancient Libyan tribes. As a successful general, Masinissa fought in the Second Punic War , first against the Romans as an ally of Carthage an later switching sides when he saw which...
), and that he was an innocent high school student. The Minister of the Interior Yazid Zerhouni
Yazid Zerhouni
Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni is the former interior minister of Algeria. In 2000, he was hospitalized on Baltimore, Maryland with an undisclosed condition.-References:...
said that he "was badly informed". No apologies were given to the victim's family, however, and the riots did not stop. Bouteflika's government maintained that the Kabylians were being "manipulated by a foreign hand".
A march that brought many tens of thousands of Kabylians into the capital, Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
, was organized by the Arouch movement, which along with the autonomist MAK sprang from the civil activism surrounding the disturbances. The demonstration was followed by confrontations between the local population of Algiers and the demonstrating Kabylians. The police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
sided with the "Algérois" and state television thanked "les Algérois for having defended their town from the invaders". Since then, public marches in Algiers are prohibited.
Victims
As of April 2001 (few days after the beginning of the black spring) there were 43 young Kabylians killed. As of July 2001, there were 267 young people shot by bullets, of which 50 died (18,7 %). The Issad commission note that "It is only comparable to military losses in very tough battles during war time, The security forces, at the same time and at the same place do not present any wounded man by bullets, nor anyone killed by bullets."As of April 2002, the Algerian Human Rights League reports 90 Kabylians killed, 5000 wounded of which 200 have become permanently disabled, and thousands of arrests, bad treatment, torture and arbitrary detentions.
At the end of the black spring events, the Algerian press reports 126 Kabylians killed, and thousands were severely injured in the riots, or tortured by the Gendarmery paramilitaries.
Results
In the end, Bouteflika agreed to some of the Kabylian demands. GendarmesGendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
were withdrawn from Kabylia, and the Berber language, (Tamazight), was made a "national language" in the Algerian constitution (but not an "official" language, on par with Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
).
The traditional Berber political parties
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
, Saïd Sadi
Saïd Sadi
Saïd Sadi is an Algerian politician and President of the Rally for Culture and Democracy ....
's Liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
Rally for Culture and Democracy
Rally for Culture and Democracy
The Rally for Culture and Democracy is a political party in Algeria. It promotes secularism and has its principal power base in Kabylia, a major Berber-speaking region...
(RCD) and Hocine Aït Ahmed
Hocine Aït Ahmed
Hocine Aït Ahmed is an Algerian politician....
's Socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
Front of Socialist Forces
Socialist Forces Front
The Socialist Forces Front , , is a social democratic and secularist, political party in Algeria. It was formed in 1963 by Hocine Ait Ahmed...
(FFS), were partly marginalized by the radical grass-roots activism and violent forms of protest. Instead, new movements rose to the fore in Kabylian politics: the Arush (Arouch) movement and the Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylia (MAK), whose regionalist
Regionalism (politics)
Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system...
ambitions for autonomy
Autonomy
Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...
marked a new evolution in Kabylian politics.