More than ten years ago I wrote an article supporting demands by Morocco's Tamazight population who were at that time pressing for their language to be recognized by the state-run media.



Some responded to my article arguing that I was not fully acquainted with the issue and that the Tamazight was only a French claim intended to sow unrest in that part of the Arab world. I am not convinced of the claim or justifications intended to intimidate and frighten others, lack authenticity and are based on national or religious sentiments only.



What we see today corroborates my conviction of the incorrect approach adopted by Arab intellectuals and the dangers that could result from the Arabization drive being forced on the Tamazight.



The Berbers of the Maghreb lived in that area long before the French set foot in the region. They played a pivotal and decisive role in shaping Arab history as we know from the conquest of Andalusia and the running of the affairs of successive Islamic states in the Maghreb. The Berbers and Tamazight are not products of colonialism nor are the Kurds in the Arab east. You cannot reject the Berbers and at the same time take pride in Tareq ibn Ziyad just as you cannot reject the Kurds and glorify Saladin.



It is inconceivable that we accuse the grandchildren of these two great peoples of treason and of being loyal to France or other countries when they had lived in the same lands they live now for a long time with their own language and culture, long before the arrival of Arab nationalists and Islamic extremists. The long and continued presence of the cultures of these minority groups is proof that they represent an extension of the past as well as a natural right in the present. What is happening in Algeria today should make all of us, who are Arabs, feel keen embarrassment. This is because the present confrontations are the result of determined attempts to impose a single culture on a large segment of the population. Instead of treating the Tamazight problem in the same way we ask others to treat our language and religion ? with understanding and tolerance ?, we try to impose on them our language and traditions and then complain of Arab or Muslim minorities in the world who are being denied their linguistic and religious rights.



We are happy with the steps taken by Morocco when it decided to consider the Tamazight language part of the country's official media. Tamazight now features in news bulletins just like Arabic. By so doing, Morocco denied the rejectionists any justification for hating Arabic or siding with the French. Blame should be put on Arab intellectuals who kept raising the banner of Arabization at the expense of local languages and claiming they were attacking foreign languages. To these, we say that Tamazight is a genuine local language. Blame should specifically be put on those Arabs who attacked Tamazight and accused its people of being traitors and Francophone agents. This led other Arabs in the East to heap praise on the Arabization campaigns while criticizing the Tamazight, their arts and culture.



It is time that Arab intellectuals regain their consciences and admit their mistakes in seeking to impose their cultures on others. It is the duty of Arab intellectuals to provide strong support for all cultures and stand by the peoples of those cultures.