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Morocco’s Amazighs still feel marginalized

It has been four years since the Amazigh language was officially recognized by the Moroccan Constitution, but there is still no law in place to guarantee the cultural minority’s rights.
Moroccan Amazigh Berbers march during a protest calling for the release of political prisoners and demanding more rights, in Rabat February 3, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer (MOROCCO - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST SOCIETY) - RTR3DBGE
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RABAT, Morocco — Almost four years have passed since the recognition of Amazigh as an official language in Morocco, making it a constitutional language alongside Arabic, in a first since the country’s independence in 1956.

The presence of the Amazigh is not limited to one region in Morocco, and people of Amazigh descent do not all necessarily speak the Amazigh language; some of them are Arabic speakers. There are regions populated with Amazighs entirely, though, or that have a high concentration of Amazigh speakers, such as Souss in southern Agadir, much of Morocco's countryside and the Middle Atlas mountain range.

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