The Conversation
Edition:
Available editions
Africa
Job Board
Become an author
Sign up as a reader
Sign in
The Conversation
Academic rigour, journalistic flair
Arts + Culture
Business + Economy
Education
Environment + Energy
Health + Medicine
Politics + Society
Science + Technology
In French
Algeria: how peaceful protests can change a troubled nation
March 26, 2019 12.19pm SAST
EPA Images
Author
Abdelbaqi Ghorab
PhD Candidate, Department of Languages and Cultures, Lancaster University
Disclosure statement
Abdelbaqi Ghorab is on a full scholarship provided by the Algerian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
Partners
Lancaster University
Lancaster University provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation UK.
The Conversation is funded by the National Research Foundation, eight universities, including the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University and the Universities of Cape Town, Johannesburg, Kwa-Zulu Natal, Pretoria, and South Africa. It is hosted by the Universities of the Witwatersrand and Western Cape, the African Population and Health Research Centre and the Nigerian Academy of Science. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a Strategic Partner. more
Republish this article
Republish
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under Creative Commons licence.
Email
Twitter44
Facebook432
LinkedIn
Print
Peaking after Friday prayers, streets across Algeria have been flooded with protesters demanding change in recent weeks. They are demanding an end to the 20-year rule of president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who has now pledged – not entirely convincingly – to stand down.
Whether genuine change will now come remains to be seen. But what is most notable about this mass “hirak” (the Arabic word for “movement”) is both its distrust of any politician who seeks to speak on behalf of the protesters – and its rejection of violence.
The importance of these two factors is grounded in the long struggle the nation has faced. Algerians, although determined and hopeful, are well acquainted with the dangers of striving for a change of this magnitude. Their shared past offers many lessons about nation building, many of which came at a heavy price.
Experts are divided over the definition of a “nation”, but many agree that two factors are important. On one hand, a collective memory serves as a record of the triumphs and failures from which the nation derives its lessons. On the other, imagination helps to instil a deep bond between the nation’s different members and cultivate an enveloping sense of community. Both of these factors have played a role in Algeria’s ongoing quest for nationhood.
Independence
Algeria won its independence from France in 1962 after a seven-year war that left more than a million dead. In Algeria, the memory of the martyrs is both a source of grief over the magnitude of the loss, and a source of pride, over the willingness of some to sacrifice everything for the nation’s freedom.
The FLN (Front de Libération Nationale) played a significant role in steering the country towards independence. But the war, and the role the FLN played in it, became a means for the party to legitimise its rule for decades afterwards, and a narrative behind which it could obscure its numerous failures.
The economic crisis of the 1980s played a major role in forcing the state to move from a single party system, which had allowed the FLN to monopolise power, towards a multi-party system. And the people took the chance to express their desire for radical change.
The FIS (Front Islamique du Salut), an Islamist party, took advantage of the situation, grew in popularity and in 1991 looked like it would defeat the FLN in the elections. But the Algerian army intervened, claiming it was protecting the nation from the dangers of FIS ideology, and blocked the electoral process. The FIS took extreme measures, a militarised wing was formed, and the country was plunged into chaos and civil war during a period known as Algeria’s “Black Decade”. Around 200,000 people lost their lives.
Algerian president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika. EPA Images
Abdelaziz Bouteflika, whose recent bid for a fifth term (despite ongoing illness) sparked the current hirak, was elected for the first time in 1999. His Civil Concord law, followed by the 2005 Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation, which came during his second term in power, helped end the civil war. But this achievement yet again became a way to legitimise his rule for years afterwards.
No Arab Spring
Memories of the Black Decade also became a shackle, long hindering any widespread opposition. When the Arab Spring swept the wider region from 2011, fears of a return to the bloodshed of the civil war prevented many Algerians from seeking change which might trigger violence. Indeed, on February 28 this year, in an address to parliament, former prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia tried to use the Arab Spring to caution the Algerian people against turning the nation into another Syria.
But the peaceful protests that followed have sent a clear reply: this is not Syria. Change through non-violent means is possible.
Algerians are well aware of their own past. And they don’t want to replicate the bloodshed Tunisia had to endure, the military seizure of power in Egypt, the unstable situation in Libya, or the devastation of Syria. The nation’s previous experiences, especially those of the Black Decade and the fatal manipulation of extremist ideology which sought to snuff out the diverse nature of Algerian society, are reminders of how a spark of change can easily, and often bloodily, be extinguished.
But Algerians also believe in the possibility of a different future, one that brings to fruition a nation imagined by them. The hirak is the people’s expression of this, one removed from the interference of politicians or foreign governments.
In a letter addressed to the people, Bouteflika has now declared that he will not run for a fifth term. But he has also cancelled the upcoming elections and extended his current term.
He has promised to oversee a peaceful transition to a new republic, but Algerians have rejected this and plan to continue the non-violent hirak. Remembering their past while striving for a better future, they are determined to translate their ideals into a new state. The struggle goes on – but its medium remains “silmiya” (peaceful).
Algeria
Algeria protests
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Tweet
Share
Get newsletter
You might also like
Algeria: how millennials used humour and creativity to force Abdelalziz Bouteflika to stand aside
What Mandela and Fanon learned from Algeria’s revolution in the 1950s
From colonial Algeria to modern day Europe, the Muslim veil remains an ideological battleground
‘I understood you!’: May 1958, the return of De Gaulle and the fall of France’s Fourth Republic
Sign in to comment
9 Comments
Oldest Newest
Show all comments
Most popular on The Conversation
Why restructuring South Africa’s power utility won’t end the blackouts
Meet the mini frogs of Madagascar – the new species we’ve discovered
Parties aren’t taking big issues seriously in South Africa’s election campaign
South Africa has a plan to fight prejudice. But it’s full of holes
The death rate for mothers having C-sections is 50 times higher in Africa
How The Gambia is going about its search for truth and reconciliation
What Cape Town’s drought can teach other cities about climate adaptation
Rwanda’s gorillas have figured out where to find their sodium fix. But it’s dangerous
What a failed Johannesburg project tells us about mega cities in Africa
Mali’s volatile mix of communal rivalries and a weak state is fuelling jihadism
Expert Database
Find experts with knowledge in:*
Want to write?
Write an article and join a growing community of more than 82,100 academics and researchers from 2,785 institutions.
Register now
The Conversation
Community
Community standards
Republishing guidelines
Research and Expert Database
Analytics
Job Board
Our feeds
Company
Who we are
Our charter
Our team
Partners and funders
Resource for media
Contact us
Stay informed and subscribe to our free daily newsletter and get the latest analysis and commentary directly in your inbox.
Email address
Follow us on social media
Privacy policy Terms and conditions Corrections
Copyright © 2010–2019, The Conversation Africa, Inc.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment