ZUWARA – Amazigh demonstrators flocked to Zuwara on Thursday to show their support for the Amazigh Supreme Council (ASC) on its so-called day of mourning, throwing their weight behind its boycott of the constitutional committee. Some two thousand Amazigh from Zuwara, Awjla and across the Jebel Nafusa marched from the outskirts of the town to central Zuwara in an event organised by the Amazigh Azref Movement and the local council, shouting that “we will not recognise those who do not recognise us”. The demonstrators chanted demands for the recognition of Tamazight as an official state language and rejecting the General National Congress (GNC) as they moved through the town. The atmosphere was celebratory and colourful with protestors singing and waving the bright green, blue, yellow and red Amazigh flags. The march followed a meeting between the ASC and three to four hundred Amazigh at the Farhat Halab Auditorium in downtown Zuwara. The gathering discussed the statement made by the ASC in the run-up to yesterday's elections announcing its rejection of any constitution devised by the constitutional committee, and its plans to hold elections for an Amazigh Parliament. Head of Zuwara Local Council and member of the ASC, Youssef Hasairi, said the Amazigh were now at critical period, saying it was of the utmost importance that they rally to the cause of the new parliament. He told the Libya Herald that the its creation would lead to a more autonomous and unified Amazigh community. The meeting broadly criticised the head of the GNC, Nouri Abu Sahmain, who was elected to Congress from Zuwara, and has been viewed by the Amazigh as having ignored their cause. It also decided not to accept official documents that were not also written in Tamazight. The ASC did face some criticism, however, from a member of the meeting who said those Amazigh who only spoke Arabic were overlooked as well as from those who felt the council should have sought the creation of a parliament earlier. The day of demonstrations ended with a candle-lit vigil where there were songs for fallen martyrs and a fireworks display. Apart from the demonstrations and festivities, Zuwara functioned normally yesterday with businesses and schools remaining open in defiance of the government holiday granted to allow voters to take part in the Constitutional Committee elections. – Libya Herald
