Thank you to Radio Canada for devoting an article to the solidarity march starting tomorrow, 21 September, from Montreal to Ottawa.
The 200 km march is in support of the Kabyle political hostages held in Algerian jails.
This march echoes the one that has been taking place for 19 days now between France and Switzerland, a journey of more than 800 km, in the name of freedom and human rights.
Thank you to the initiators of these noble actions. Whether in Europe or North America, the aim is the same: to say no to the arbitrary treatment and abuse of innocent Kabyle citizens.
Thank you to the marchers who, despite the difficulties involved in this kind of exercise, are going and will go all the way, motivated by their duty to show solidarity with their fellow citizens and by their love of justice and freedom.
Yelis Idurar
Radio- Canada
Montreal-Ottawa: A march for the release of political prisoners in Algeria.
Tomorrow, Kabyle activists will begin a 200-kilometre march from Montreal to the Canadian Parliament.
The march is to demand the release of our detainees, who have been unjustly imprisoned by the Algerian state’, says Malika Absi, one of the organisers.
These people who are in prison can’t express themselves. That’s why we, who are abroad, have decided to be the voice of the voiceless’, she says.
The Kabyles, in Algeria, are part of the great family of Amazighs, or Berbers, who are the indigenous people of North Africa. They have their own language and culture, and some are campaigning for the creation of an independent state. This is considered illegal in Algeria.
Last week, a Radio-Canada report revealed that a young Kabyle named Massinissa Lakehal had been imprisoned by the Algerian authorities mainly to punish his father, Ammar, a Canadian citizen who has long been active in the Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylia.
Massinissa’s brother, Syphax Lakehal, was one of the marchers.
The Algerian authorities have not responded to our requests for comment on Massinissa’s imprisonment.
According to amendments made by Algeria to its Penal Code in 2021, any act aimed at State security, national unity and the stability and normal functioning of institutions is considered a terrorist act or sabotage.
Amnesty International has often denounced the vagueness of this definition, which it believes is designed to silence peaceful dissent.
Anyone who aspires to independence for Kabylia is classified as a terrorist’, deplores Ms Absi. According to her, even Kabyles who are not in favour of independence for Kabylia end up in prison. People are imprisoned for liking something on Facebook or TikTok,’ she says.
She hopes that the march will help to make the Canadian government, among others, aware of the injustices suffered by Kabyles.
Departure at noon
A rally will be held in front of the offices of Amnesty International on rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest in Montreal at 12 noon on Saturday 21 September to mark the marchers’ departure. Amnesty is not associated with this event.
There will be two of them walking the entire route, but other members of the Kabyle community will accompany them at various points along the way.
Some of them will be masked for fear that their relatives in Algeria will pay the price for their political involvement.
They are due to arrive in Ottawa on Saturday 28 September.
A march in support of Kabyle political prisoners is also currently taking place in Europe. Five Kabyle activists left Brest in France on 2 September and are heading for the UN’s European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
For Radio-Canada Brigitte Bureau
