Who are the Kabyle Berbers?
This group is the most active in promoting Berber identity. Kabylie region, east of Algiers, is home to some 5 million Berbers. It comprises the provinces of Tizi Ouzou, Bejaia and Bouira. Some 50% of neighbouring Setif, Bordj Bou Arreridj and Boumerdes provinces are Kabyle speakers. About half the 3-million-strong population of Algiers are Kabyles. Q: Why conflict with the government? Whereas Algeria’s constitution says Islam is the state religion and Arabic the official language, the Kabyles see their cultural and linguistic heritage in pre-Islamic North Africa. After Algeria gained independence in 1962, the Kabyles confronted the new government. The Socialist Forces Front (FFS), founded by war hero Hocine Ait Ahmed, led a two-year rebellion from 1963 to 1965. Q: What was the Berber Spring? In March 1980 police stopped writer Mouloud Mammeri from entering Tizi Ouzou to give a lecture on ancient Berber poetry. Students took to the streets in Kabylie region and later in Algiers. On 20
