Rabat – There is hardly any “program” that does not include an entry about culture. For some reason, however, most give the impression that culture is limited to “spaces” in which youth can express themselves through a limited number of performance art forms, specifically, theatre, singing and the plastic arts. None talks of dancing, for instance. Very few addressed museums, archeology and the conservation of the historical heritage in a systematic manner specifying how to fund the sector. Culture is not perceived as the socioeconomic factor that identified and expresses the aspirations, expectations, assessments of the conflicts that characterize the living conditions of the community that is inherently diverse, multiple, and dynamic.
Culture is viewed as an activity involving a set of actions, crafts and skills and not as the structuring vehicle of the values that bind groups of people that may have different languages, religions, social structures, legal systems and ethnic backgrounds and make of them a nation.
In Morocco, for many years, the language issue has been at the center of the cultural debate. The dichotomous situation of the Arabic and Amazigh languages has been a cause of political conflict between Panarabists the most extremists of whom even denied the language status to Amazigh reducing it to a corrupt and deteriorated version of the variety of some ancient form of the Arabic language. Denying the existence of the Amazigh language meant the denial of the legitimacy of any cultural or political claims of the Amazigh people. The political party that was commissioned by the State to check the excesses of the Panarabists was the Popular Movement. This party came to be associated with the Amazigh question in the imagination of Moroccans. In the pamphlets it is using in the current campaign, the name of the party is written in Arabic on top of the documents and right below it, it is written in Tifinagh, the Amazigh script. My observation is not about which language comes first and on top of the other, however, but is of a more meaningful nature.
In fact, the name in Tifinagh is not in Amazigh but is a transliteration of the Arabic appellation of the party. My first reaction was to check whether it is a policy of the party not to modify the label of a trademark as is usually done with commercial commodities. I verified the literature for the French version. My theory was verified. Not only does the French read Mouvement Populaire and not Al Haraka Achaabiya but the official website of the party has no Amazigh version. There is, therefore, an averred incoherence both in terms of the linguistic ideology of the party and in the communication strategy. USFP and PPS, on the other hand have translated the whole titles of their party. In fact, even the Isiqlal party, which is known for its traditional strong panarabic ideology has translated into Amazigh the word party in their literature.
Furthermore, the pamphlet which the kids of the Popular Movement handed me, there is no mention whatsoever, neither direct nor indirect either to the language or to the identity issues. I tried to identify a mention of it in their website but I failed. Maybe they do have one, but it must be embedded somewhere or is to be found after four clicks. I didn’t have that patience and I moved to the document that is presented as the electoral program. This text touches on the issue almost indirectly and in a shy manner compared to the vehement discourse of a few elections ago.
Although the language situation has been settled by the constitution and Amazigh has been recognized as an official language, the conflict persists as the actual implementation of the provisions of the constitution has been far from comprehensive. Amazigh is still not taught equally as is Arabic nor has it been introduced in the administration, the judiciary and in public services. The funds dedicated to promote the Arabic language are by far higher than those dedicated to Amazigh. One would have expected electoral programs to address the issue directly, in detail and unambiguously. They just didn’t. It may be, however, that some candidates have included some discourse to this effect, but that remains way below what it would take to make a difference in real life!
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