Movement_for_the_Autonomy_of_Kabylie
Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylie
Political party in Algeria
The Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylie (MAK; Kabyle: Amussu i ufraniman n tmurt n iqbayliyen; French: Mouvement pour l’autodétermination de la Kabylie; Arabic: حركة تقرير مصير منطقة القبائل), officially named the Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylie (Kabyle: Afraniman i Tmurt n Yeqbayliyen; French: Mouvement pour l'autonomie de la Kabylie) before 3 October 2013, is a Kabyle nationalist and separatist political organization seeking autonomy, self-determination rights of the Kabyle people, and ultimately independence of the Kabylie region from Algeria. It was founded by the Kabyle Berberist Ferhat Mehenni, now president of the Provisional Government of Kabylie in exile, after the "Black Spring" disturbances in 2001.
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Since 2021, the MAK has been classified as a terrorist organisation in Algeria after claims from the Algerian authorities saying that MAK members were planning car bombs.[3] The founder of MAK, Mehenni, is arrested by the French authorities and placed in police custody in 2021 as part of an investigation into organised money laundering in relation to sports betting.[4]
In 2011, a close associate of Ferhat Mehenni and a former senior member of the organisation, Idir Djouder, accused the MAK of receiving funds from Morocco (250,000 euros per month) and criticised its management methods. Idir Djouder uses the term "dictator", he describes his "government" and the content of the meetings as formal with decisions taken "elsewhere".[5]
Algerian authorities accused MAK of ordering the widespread 2021 Algeria wildfires in the region of Kabylia. Five members of MAK were convicted in absentia for involvement in the murder of Djamel Ben Ismail on August 11, 2021. Among the members was the organization's leader, Ferhat Mehenni.[6] On August 26, 2021, Algeria issued an international arrest warrant for Ferhat Mehenni.[7]
On January 5, the organization signs a treaty of friendship and solidarity with The World Uyghur Congress.[8][9]