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Omar Ben Kaddour

OmarBen Keddour was attached to press and started publishing his reformative articles in several Algerian and Arab newspaper to spread awareness in Algerian’s spirits and to stand with oppressed Muslim communities he wrote poems and prose to support them .throughout his writing Omar Ben Keddour  focused  on the educational , social and religious side that  are the pillars of building communities  he was interested in the educational side he sees that there can  be no a renaissance for Algerian people as long as it doesn’t follow the path of science ,this latter is the only beneficial cure to revive dead hearts and to revitalize  the nation from its coma  he keeps his preaching  in other articles in the newspaper el farouk and  el sadiq  and we find  him in an article named  education and economy calling rich people and those with authority to help building  Arabic schools to refine morals and teach the principles of Arabic language and to establish economic companies and charities and literature clubs . In the education field he focused on the Arab language since he called Algerians to learn it as he considers it one of the corposants of the Algerian personality. As for the low religious aspect due the French policy aiming to eradicate the Islamic religion throughout the eradication of religious cultural institutions this contributed in spreading heresies and myths contradicting the instruction of the correct Islam. During these dark conditions the voice of elite pioneer reformers increased such as Omar Ben Keddour who fought with his poetry and prose, he is considered as the most eminent thinkers and reformers who fought for religious reforms in Algeria.

Omar Ben Keddour was always perusing heresies and making sure to call for everything that can promote religion the renaissance of Islam and purifying it from delusions and myths one of his most important books poetry or prose from his poem describing through it the rotten religious state of Algeria it was filled with heresies myths as a result of ignorance.

From the crimes of scholars

Religion has become an enemy for the souls

If the opponent throws it he calls

You said religion is weak and forgotten

Think in the origin of the religion you’ll see

The deviation of scientist was the reason

How many halal they forbidden how many are forbidden

They allowed when they received gold

The writings of Omar Ben Keddour are rich and abundant in the religious domain; he worked hard in his calls for the social reform that are not less important than its predecessors. In this field we find that he focuses on reforming women's affairs. Like other reformists he calls for the women’s liberation from ignorance and incites on the necessity to teach the Algerian women to eliminate her ignorance which led into moral deviation since ignorance is the enemy in dividing communities. He wrote  a long article  named “ the ignorance of Muslim women got religion what it got from myths and heresies”  Omar Ben Keddour considered the ignorance of women a big loss to the society , perhaps there is a reflection of the Islamic doctrine and prejudice the Algerian nationalism  and gives an opportunity for frauds and  charlatans  to affect Islam badly  despite establishing newspaper Farouk  its principles was to not get involved in political matters to avoid  the scourge  of politics on him and his paper.

However he couldn’t keep his regret to himself while witnessing what is happening to his Muslim brothers this made him start a political fight. We find his daring and important positions from the law of forced recruitment as he launched a media campaign against it in 1908 throughout his writings, in the Tunisian newspaper (takadoum) he also republished some of his articles in the Tunisian newspaper elmoubchr and then in the Turkish one civilization. Doctor Ihdaden Zouhir considered Omar’s the first to say the world patriotism in the colonial newspaper el akhbar in the Arabic section  he wrote the first article named “our principles with  national strength  progresses '' he considered Algeria as a one nation divided from France , his activity in journalism according to him is one of the prominent ways in which  he was able through it to spread his reformist ideas and contributed in the modern Algerian  awakening, since the press was for him one of the most important  reform tools to reveal the nation’s disease  and to find a proper medicine to enlighten Muslims.