The last bloody events in ‘Ben Ryan’ an Algerian province is it a civil war or a new kind of apartheid? How the Ibadits minority lives and this tragic crisis of Algeria?
Everyone who knows the region know that Amzab is a large oasis in the Algerian Sahara desert, about 500 km from Algiers, this region is constituted of five different cities: the city of Ghardaia, an economic city which gives jobs to many Ghardians, with a population of more than 500 thousand people. Most of them Berbers, The Ibadits are descent of Abdullah Ibn Abad son of bin Obaid bin Tamim first founder of Ghardia. They are ‘Khawarij’(initially supporting the caliphate of the fourth and final "Rightly Guided" caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib, later rejected him), and if they denies that (Muslim Sifat) and recognize the creation of the Koran. They are different from the nomadic Arabs who settled in southern cities, in terms of language and social customs and traditions and beliefs, especially the persistence of the people of an exceptional Amzab religious doctrine in Algeria, which is the doctrine, linked or original from the Sultanate of Oman in the Arabian Peninsula. The people of Amzabi people are also deployed in the northern cities of Algeria and most of them work in different professions mainly trade, and they are well represented in the petroleum centers of Armal Well and Messaoud Well.
The question is: How could these religious minorities coexist with the Sunni-Maliki Algerian Islamic majority Movement? How could they stand against the terrorist groups? and how could they maintain their identity and cohesion throughout the black decade (the Period between 80ies and 90ie wich Algeria witnessed civil war, carried mainly by Kabilian berber seeking independence, and Al-Qaeda terror groups). The people of Amzab stood against the dominance of Islamic militant groups and against the ruling Baath-ist ideology of the National Liberation Front and the ‘Francophonie’ secular military establishment, the Amzab people didn’t fell in the spiral of other components of Tamazight in the Kabylia independent movement, their region recorded only two terrorist attacks, in which foreign workers of Armal well were targeted, this situation indicates that this side of the country has remained relatively far from the mess that Algeria was witnessing, the most weird and confusing situation is that the people of Amzab living in northern Algeria have never been subjected to any kind of terrorist attack, especially in cities that are considered hot spots as Boumerdas, Blida, Tizi Ouzou and Buera and Ain Defla.
The people of Amzab Ibadits started to fear for their fate since the Islamic Front for the Rescue lost the elections in most of the cities in south Algeria in 1991. Their logical and natural Fears, were always tied to the history which took place a thousand years ago, that reminded them the destruction of the ‘Rostom’or Alrostomi state by the Fatimid’s (The Fatimid’s left the rule of Algeria (972-1148). This Berber dynasty, which had founded the towns of Miliana, Mèdèa, and Algiers), which forced them to flee to ‘Sedarata’ south of ‘Warkala city’, since that time the Ibadits community still reminding every time their people massacre and displacement which force them to relocate to the Sahara region. Legislative and municipal elections in Algeria of the nineties, defined the beginning in which was given the Kabilian area to current Tamazight tribes and to Ibadits Amzab Free candidates, The Islamic party(FIS) recorded a weak presence in the north and the south in comparison with cities of the east and west and center. Another important observation in regards of the political landscape at this time, is the absence of any People from Amzab Ibadits in the Islamic currents in contrast of what was happening with Berber or Tamazight people, whether at the level of the leadership or ordinary members. In this context, we note that the autarky that Amzab people lived in for centuries, to preserve themselves and their Ibadits traditional habits, enabled this minority to preserve their identity by teachings a tolerant Islamic ‘Sharia’(Islamic Law) and Arabic language, as they could keep their different Ibadits (Islamic Ideology)from the general tendency of other Algerians. We can summarize as follows the most important differences between the Ibadits Amzab populations and the other Algerian Islamists: 1 - the view of each one of them on term of ‘nation’: Dar al-Islam (pro-Islam) and Dar-infidelity (infidels)...
2 - The dispute over the concepts of ‘jihad’ and ‘ethics’ and conduct of a Muslim.
3 - Contradiction in the interpretation of the national State: Many people in Algeria dream of an Islamic state (mix of religion and state affaires), but the Amzab Ibadits advocate the doctrine of the separation of religion from the state issues.
4 – The discrepancies between the Amzab Ibadits and other Algerian Sunnis fractions whom opposes the military rule of ‘Baath-ist’ Sunni government, is evident as he Ibadits seek to worship the rulers instead of dooming and criticizing, their ideology depends mainly on dialogue instead of confrontation .. The political thought of Amzab Ibadits is based on tolerance, moderation, renunciation of violence, discord and to stay away from the behavior of all minorities in the world, we can say that this attitude helped them to survive through history by pleading always for peace and neutrality or simply fallowing the winner.
The position of Algerian Ibadits regarding the Arab world is too vague, they do not feel that they are Arabs, and refuse to give up the Tamazight identity and their own language Tamazight, they consider the Arabic language as something essential to their religious beliefs, they think that "the Arabic language is the language of the Paradise"; Regarding French Language they call it ‘the language of bread and work, and they believe that Tamazight is the language of understanding the world, and a way to perpetrate the Amazigh culture and identity.
The Ibadits consider themselves part of the uprising Algerian Amazigh movement in northern Algeria; Tamazight struggle to get recognition, from the government for their cultural and linguistic peculiarities. The only difference between them, is that Amzab people do not see any objection to the use of Arabic characters to write TAMAZIGHT as they insist over the complementarily between the two languages in the formation of Ibadits identity. The Amazigh of the north are in favor of the use of Latin characters in their written language, the Amzab people reject radically the politicization of the Amazigh movement ‘and the independent Kabilia’. Finally, we can say that the ethnic minority of Amzab in Algeria clings to the ‘democratic’ Republican system, which in their opinion, guarantees them their rights and interests and the continuity of their identity without dissolving or melting them in the larger Amazigh society, this status was maintained for centuries, especially during the Ottoman and the French rule period, in which they experienced certain freedom for practicing their religious beliefs as ‘soufism’ and "emerging behavior", contrary to the "secret living" that they were imposed by different religious rulers through history. They watched with great concern the development of the situation of their Ibadits brothers in Libya and the unsuccessful campaign carried by Colonel Gaddafi, in which they were sidelined and pushed and intimidated to fallow the religious ‘Maliki doctrine’. The same situation is lived by Tunisian Ibadits, whom live in the island of Djerba. In Algeria the problem of ‘the state of the nation’ remain open until now; the question is:
Are people of Amzab the model of a modern thinking and living and a good example to fallow for the weak Algerian democracy? we believe that the events in the city of Ben Ryan in 1990 and 2008 were not because of its religious or ideological backgrounds, nor promoted from the Algerian rulers as a foreign conspiracy to outset and create friction between the Algerian ethnic groups, but obviously the economic and social crisis, despite the large oil revenues, which abound in the region of Ghardaia, Ben Ryan, and benefit the newcomers to the region.
In regards to the situation being lived in the wounded city of Ben Ryan, after the sectarian conflict, we would shed some light about the racial majority of Malkit sustained and supported by the Algerian National Army and the police.
Please click on the below links for more information :
https://www.yousendit.com/download/WnBReUNFdGo0b0JFQlE9PQ Http://www.archive.org/details/exactions_a_berriane http://www.lequotidienalgerie.com/index.php/5260/interview-du-dr-kamaleddine-fekhar-militant-des-droits-de-l% e2% 80% 99homme-ghardaia / Http://www.elwatan.com/Les-fuites-en-avant-du-pouvoir Http://www.tsa-algerie.com/Algerie---le-role-troublant-de-la-police-a-Berriane_6050.html According to analysts on this matter, this superficial conflict, hide a huge collision between various wings and arms of the Algerian Army, which are radically opposed, in particular to the third mandate of President Bouteflica, this is an ethnic cleansing in its full dimensions and standards, the International Criminal Court should take seriously this tragic situation and investigate to open an independent inquiry to find out the truth ignored by some global players thanks to Algerian Gaz.
This bloody violence not seen in the region for centuries, is touching the symbols of Ibadian men and their institutions and culture, “no one can claim really that he knows what’s happening exactly in Algeria generally and in Ghardaia particularly” as told by the former U.S Ambassador to Algeria.
By Jalal Nali
