User:Mr.Bessadah

AKLI SH'KKA BESSADAH Mr. Bessadah, who prefers to be called by his first name Akli, is a film maker, spokesperson & commentator, who works on behalf of his people 'the Tuareg'. Until quite recently the Tuareg (or 'Amazigh' as they call themselves in their own language, 'Tamazight') roamed the Sahara Desert for thousands of years. More recently they have been forced to settle by climatic change or as a result of pressure from suspicious or unfriendly governments. Now, with no state to call their own, somewhat like the Gypsies: whether Roma or Sinti & the Kurds, and, until the creation of Israel: the Jews, the Tuareg are, as ever, widely scattered throughout a vast area, but now tragically separated by a number of highly artificial frontiers. These frontiers were originally engineered by the three or four former colonial powers who delineated a number of new states mainly in the late 20th century. The new States included Algeria Niger & Mali and, in the case of Mr. Bessadah, Libya. Akli has been living in the U.K. since 2009. He has devoted the largest part of his energies to a single cause: freedom and justice for his people. Born somewhere in the desert in 1983, besides his fluency in Tamazight he speaks Arabic & English and has a certain amount of French. Since arriving in the UK his activities have included: ... translation & support work with the Red Cross ... founding 'The Tifinagh Association', a voluntary body dedicated to culture & education, & to publicising the many threats to the ancient Tuareg people & their unique language & culture ... working with a local human rights group, but also, at national level, with the London-based 'Minority Rights Group' as well as with a prominent member of the House Lords whose interests include the rights of persecuted minorities ... 'Volunteering' with 2 'community arts' organisations, in West Yorkshire, where he is domiciled for the moment. In his work for the Tuareg he has been giving vigorous support to the Libyan Revolution as a 'one man pressure group', in frequent contact with numerous friends in Libya. He is also in touch with a number of Libyan expatriates in several other countries. He has been employed or consulted in numerous interviews, by a variety of TV and radio stations, as well as by the press. He is widely recognised as a well-informed authority in relation to recent events, and a man of perception and integrity. He brings a fresh perspective to the attention of the public, that has been too easily-ignored for decades, both by interpreting events from the critically-important Tuareg point of view, but also as a commentator who knows significant 'players', both inside & outside Libya, through various social media including the telephone.