“Our Language, Our Rights, Our Territories”: The Struggle of Amazigh Women

22/01/2021 |

By Capire

Watch Balti Zaina, of the Amazigh people, talk about the struggles of women to defend their land and fight the attacks from the Moroccan state
A screen capture of activist Balti Zaina, from the video embedded below, where she addresses the struggles of Amazigh women in the south of Morocco.

Watch Balti Zaina, an activist, human rights advocate, and member of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (L‘Association Marocaine des Droits Humains — AMDH) in Tiznit, who recorded a statement for the closing of the 5th International Action of the World March of Women, in 2020. Balti is denouncing the effects of Law No. 113–13, which allows the occupation of land for pasture in Morocco. The legislation was passed by the country’s political regime, the Makhzen, which has feudal and authoritarian characteristics. 

Balti highlights the lives and experiences of rural women in Tiznit, and how important their land is to their lives. The Amazigh people has one of the longest histories in the African continent. They live in North Africa, mostly in rural areas. Balti speaks from the Sous Region, located in South Morocco. The history of the Amazigh people is marked by resistance, and the Amazigh women are fighting for their language, their rights, and their territory.

Translated from Portuguese by Aline Scátola

 

Original article in Portuguese

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