Kabylia to proclaim independence on April 20 in New York

President of Kabylia’s provisional government (ANAVAD) Ferhat Mhenni said the independence of the Kabylia state from Algeria will be proclaimed on April 20 in New York, denouncing Algeria’s repression.

“The Movement for the Self-determination of the Kabylia MAK and the Anavad assume their responsibility towards Kabylia, whether towards the prisoners or those sentenced to death or towards history. This is how we have decided to take two giant steps this year and next towards our freedom and national recovery,” Mhenni told his compatriots.

“On April 20, 2024, we will proclaim the rebirth of the Kabyle state. April 20 is a symbolic date. History has made it a major landmark, whether for what it was in 1980, 2001 or 2021,” he said, referring to Kabylia revolutions against Algerian colonialism.

Mhenni went on to highlight the Pre-Algerian colonialism history of Kabylia which safeguarded its independence during Ottoman rule, until it fell to French colonialism in 1857 which attached it to French Algeria.

The independence proclamation will take place in New York, home to the UN which the new Kabylia state aspires to join, he said.

Kabyle population have long been repressed and stigmatized by the military regime in Algiers. While the Kabyle’s were at the forefront of the struggle against French colonialism, Kabyle leaders were assassinated by a military junta that took power in the wake of independence installing a single party regime.

During Bouteflika’s rule, the regime killed 126 Kabyle protesters in the incidents of the Black Spring, when thousands took to the streets to demand recognition of their linguistics and cultural specificities and better economic development. The protests were sparked by the killing of high school student Massinisa Guermah by the Algerian gendarmerie.

Under the Chengriha-Tebboune duo, the military regime took intimidation to a terrorizing level. Kabyle activists have accused Algiers of deliberately setting fire to their region as Algerian authorities sent scores of Kabyle independence activists to jail on bogus charges including terrorism.

“Kabylia aspires to have its own president, its own parliament, its own authority, and its own sovereignty over its territories. It does not need Algeria,” Mhenni said.

He recalled Kabylia’s boycott and near zero turnout in the Algerian 2019 elections that brought Tebboune to the presidency as well as the boycott of his constitution in 2022.

“The Algerian constitution does not apply to the Kabyle people and Kabylia which also boycotted the legislative elections of June 12, 2021. The Algerian parliament and laws do not apply in Kabylia and are not recognized by the Kabyles. Kabylia has already withdrawn from Algeria,” he said.