Les pays du Sahel annoncent leur plein soutien au Maroc et saluent l'initiative stratégique « Rabat – Atlantique »    Service militaire 2025 : Début de l'opération de recensement    Crans Montana. L'initiative atlantique Royale est historique et porteuse de paix    Le ministre des Affaires étrangères du Mali : le Maroc, voix de sagesse dans un temps de divisions... et un allié fiable sous la conduite du Roi Mohammed VI    Le Président français se félicite du lancement par S.M. le Roi des travaux de réalisation de la Ligne à Grande Vitesse Kénitra-Marrakech    Maroc Telecom. Près de 80 millions de clients et de nouvelles ambitions    Congrès du PJD. Le casse du siècle    Ligue des Champions CAF : Pyramids FC rejoint Mamelodi Sundowns en finale    Averses orageuses avec grêle locale et rafales de vent, vendredi dans plusieurs provinces du Royaume    2èmes Assises du Féminisme, pour l'égalité économique    Résultats de la 9ème édition du Grand Prix National de la Presse Agricole et Rurale    Mawazine 2025 : Michael Kiwanuka, la soul britannique sous les étoiles de Rabat    Taghazout Bay célèbre l'humour marocain et l'âme d'Edith Piaf    Le Casa Fashion Show souffle sa 20ème bougie    Procédure pénale : L'accès des associations à la Justice oppose Ouahbi à deux instances consultatives ( Décryptage)    LDC.CAF : Aujourd'hui, les demi-finales égypto-sud-africains ''retour''    CAN(f) Futsal Maroc 25 / Ce vendredi, journée off : Le Maroc grand favori !    Championnat africain de football scolaire de la CAF : L'Equipe nationale (f) U15 en demi-finale cet après-midi    PSG : Achraf Hakimi, troisième latéral le plus cher d'Europe    SIAM 2025 : les régions en vitrine, entre ambition agricole et fierté territoriale    L'Inspecteur Général des FAR effectue une visite de travail en Ethiopie    L'Humeur : Démission après chômage    Interview avec Loubna Ghaouti : « Les réalisations des Marocains du Canada manquent de visibilité au Maroc »    Gabon/Présidentielle: la Cour constitutionnelle confirme l'élection de Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema    Rome : Akhannouch représente SM le Roi aux funérailles du Pape François    Le baril continue de dévisser alimenté par les tensions commerciales et les incertitudes    France-Algérie : la tension continue de monter autour des expulsions et des visas    Les patronats marocain et égyptien explorent les moyens de booster les échanges commerciaux    Visa y Maroc Telecom firman una alianza estratégica para los pagos móviles en África    Ex-Raja Casablanca president Mohamed Boudrika extradited to Morocco for bad checks    Settat : Détention du suspect principal dans l'horrible affaire de meurtre à Ben Ahmed    Indignations après les actes de vandalisme au Stade Mohammed V    Banque mondiale : 83 % des entreprises au Maroc opèrent dans le secteur informel    DeepTech Summit : Comment l'IA transforme l'innovation    Algérie... La liberté d'expression à la merci des militaires    SIEL 2025 : Des illustrateurs marocains valorisent le patrimoine de Rabat    Comediablanca : Pour le meilleur et pour le rire    La FRMF choisit un partenaire stratégique pour la gestion de la billetterie    L'ONMT crée trois pôles stratégiques    ONU: Omar Hilale élu président du Comité de haut niveau sur la coopération Sud-Sud    Walid Regragui : Le Maroc offre aux joueurs binationaux un projet de cœur et de conviction    Le Crédit Agricole du Maroc et la société TOURBA s'allient pour promouvoir l'agriculture régénératrice    Effondrement... Trois éléments du "Polisario" fuient et se rendent aux Forces Armées Royales    La Chine dément toute négociation commerciale avec Washington : pas de consultations ni d'accord en vue    Quand le régime algérien fabrique ses propres crises : d'un simple hashtag à un règlement de comptes interne au nom de la souveraineté    Les prévisions du vendredi 25 avril    Mustapha Fahmi amène Cléopâtre et Shakespeare au SIEL 2025    Un chef patissier marocain bat le record Guinness, en réalisant le plus long fraisier du monde    







Merci d'avoir signalé!
Cette image sera automatiquement bloquée après qu'elle soit signalée par plusieurs personnes.



Amit Hai Cohen, an Israeli filmmaker who is proud of his Moroccan origin [Interview]
Publié dans Yabiladi le 25 - 08 - 2017

Amit Hai Cohen is a Jewish musician and filmmaker living in Jerusalem. His grandparents lived 69 years ago in Morocco, most precisely in a village southeastern Ouerzazat called Tizgui. Amit has always been connected to the kingdom, a thing that he managed to portray through his work and art. Interview.
Born in Israel but connected to Morocco, this is the story of Amit Hai Cohen, a Jewish musician and filmmaker living in Jerusalem. His grandparents were one of the many Jewish people who lived in Morocco 69 years ago and had to immigrate to Israel. Amit who is fascinated by the Moroccan-Jewish culture, spoke to Yabiladi in an Interview about what Morocco meant to him, his dreams, his passion and art.
Who is Amit Hai Cohen ?
I am a Jewish man whose history is rooted in Morocco and Tunisia. I live in Jerusalem and I am a musician and a filmmaker. In my work I am determined to showcase history, tradition and social problems. I compose also for cinema, I do music production, and writing (…) these are all tools that allow me to say things about the place where I live and tell my story.
You were not born in Morocco but you seem very interested in the Moroccan culture, how come ?
Although I was not born in Morocco, my history is planted there 2000 years ago. In fact, my grandparents, Tamu and Moshe and their ancestors, used to live in a small village called Tizgui located between Ouarzazat and Tilwat. I grew up attached to the Moroccan culture and I love it. I love the colors, the scents and the people. Morocco has allowed me to expand my boundaries and to dream.
The country reminds me of the beautiful face of my grandmother, and the naivety of my grandfather. When I see people in Morocco, I see my family in their faces, the same characteristics, the same facial features, soul and kindness. The first time I have been to Tizgui, I saw the river they were drinking from, and I visited the synagogue they used to pray in. The experience was mind blowing because I had the chance to go back in time.
Were you discriminated against because of your Moroccan origin in Israel ?
Moroccans in Israel have experienced racism from the moment they stepped on the Israeli soil. I have been making music for a series that tackles child kidnapping. It is a painful matter… thousands of Jewish children who came from Arabic and Muslim countries were kidnapped by the authorities for illegal adoption. Their parents were told that their children died but without handing them their bodies, babies just disappeared. However, Israeli-Moroccans knew how to fight back. Reuven Aberjel whom I am currently making a movie about, has been an activist who fought almost all his life against the racism of European Jews who always wanted to control us. Till now, the struggle is ongoing and we have to work hard in order to restore equality.
On the other hand, life in Morocco was not always ideal for Jews, we must face it and have an honest discussion about it… when they came here many of them wanted to go back . They did not understand why Jews were racist against other Jews. Let us say : the world is not and ideal place to live in when you are controlled by others.
Do you consider living in Morocco one day ?
We often come to Morocco, visiting friends and attending concerts. We also are working on our Moroccan passport. We don't think for the moment of moving to Morocco but I hope we will have Morocco's door open for us. We belong to Morocco, we are part of it, our rabbis are buried there and the Jewish lifestyle is still present there. Moroccan Jews have always been "here and there".
I am in daily contact with friends living in Morocco, even from Tizgui, my grandmother's village. I started working on a project there to document the history of the area. And with God's help I am planning to build a cemetery for Jews there. I met amazing friends there who are helping me enormously.
Is the Moroccan art popular in Israel ?
Moroccan traditional music is everywhere in synagogues, it is sung during family events and happens to be featured in daily conversations and slang. I have finished working on a musical project that pays tribute to Zohra Alfassia, a great Jewish-Moroccan diva, at the international Oud festival. I collaborated with my partner in life and wife Neta Elkayam and 9 more musicians.
Tickets were sold out two weeks in advance. The hall was packed, young people came with their grandmothers, it was indeed an ecstatic atmosphere. People want to connect with their roots through music and remember their history and not only the 65-year period they spent in Israel.
Do you receive invitations to participate to Moroccan festivals ?
Neta and I have been several times to Essouira Atlantic Andalus festival and participated in other projects in Morocco. Essouira already feels like home to us… we really love this place. When we go there we spend most of our time going to Zawia with friends. Actually we are planning to come soon to record a few musicians for our album that will be published next year.
Do Israelis of Moroccan origin care about what is happening in Morocco?
There is always interest but it's being erased along the generations. The connection is lost with time. People are less interested in politics and what is happening in the Moroccan society. Well..we have a lot of problems to solve here but today there is also an awakening among the younger generation that wishes to maintain the special relationship between Jews and Morocco. It would be hard to cut off ties, though many want to.


Cliquez ici pour lire l'article depuis sa source.