By observing the marchers for the freedom of a people oppressed by the Algerian state which they themselves freed from the French colonialists at the cost of innumerable sacrifices, my whole being was traversed by a joyful thrill.
I made several trips back and forth between the head and tail of the march to confirm that they were much more numerous and better organized than the year before. I went from one group to another, taking pictures, and trying with all my strength to contain my tears of happiness. I stopped here and there to listen to the conversations; to observe those smiling faces that were conscious of walking for a noble cause. From the words exchanged, a force emerged which took on the appearance of a conviction impossible to stop. In the ranks, the presence of young people of immigrant background filled me with joy.
Through conversations, I have understood that some are from the third to fourth generation. This is an exceptional news for the future of the Kabyle nation and proves that the work accomplished in different areas has come to fruiton. We have no heavy media, which would be a crucial step in raising awareness among immigrant youth and in explaining the Kabyle Project to the peoples of the world who look at us with interest and respect.
A wave of determination to walk between the Place de la Bastille and the Place de la République, two heavily politically symbolic places, where the cries of freedom of the French people still resonate to this day. I would have preferred the journey to be longer, that it would make the tour of Paris entire, or at least the North, that it would empty the cafes where Kabyle regulars who have had their spirits shaken by the years of the colonial state propaganda. I wish they all could shake off the consciousnesses attached to the old reassuring schemes, so destructive for the Kabyle identity, that those plunged into conformist confusion and the “inherited” and unconscious affliction due to a loss of sovereignty would be shaken out of their torpor and that they could take part in the most significant event in the recent history of our people.
The massive presence of Kabyle women edified the determination of their people to regain their independence, stolen by the corrupt interests of a political system of an agonizing old world – that ancient, stagnant way of thinking about international relations which is rapidly dissolving, but nevertheless clings desperately to it’s unjust privileges, which are all obstacles to the emancipation of peoples under colonization, especially the peoples of Africa who follow with particular and interested attention the movement of emancipation of the Kabyle people.
This female presence filled me with joy, for as we all know, the Kabyle woman is the base of Taqvaylit (being Kabyle). Not only will the increasingly strong presence of the Kabyle woman unify the forces of our people, who will not be overwhelmed by external circumstances that are sources of division, but will also catalyze the liberation movement; it will give it a saving energy to move serenely towards it’s objectives and open new perspectives that will lead to it’s liberation. Through this female prescence, the Kabyle people have just undeniably confirmed it’s leap forward in the process towards it’s liberation. On the pavement of Paris resonated that giant step accomplished by a pacifist people, bearing a love of freedom and human justice.
It is a truth applicable on an individual and collective scale: When facing a difficult situation, the first course of action is to identify the obstacles and problems, thereby discovering the effective solutions to implement. Only when the problems have been identified can they be solved. Similarly, it is human nature to progress step by step by making mistakes and correcting them; it is one of our best ways of traversing the world. On this day, April 16th 2017, the Kabyle people have just taken a giant step towards correcting one of it’s fundamental mistakes (attempting to democratize the Arab-muslim state of Algeria).
Firmus Loïc.