Ahmed Ouyahia is an Algerian politician who was Prime Minister of Algeria four times. A career diplomat, he also served as Minister of Justice, and he was one of the founders of the Democratic National Rally (RND) as well as the party's secretary-general. He is considered by Western observers to be close to the military of Algeria and a member of the "eradicator" faction in the 1990s civil war against Islamist militants.
The Movement for the Society of Peace is an Islamist party in Algeria, led by Mahfoud Nahnah until his death in 2003. Its current leader is Bouguerra Soltani. It is aligned with the international Muslim Brotherhood.
The 1995 Quebec independence referendum was the second referendum to ask voters in the Canadian French-speaking province of Quebec whether Quebec should proclaim national sovereignty and become an independent country, with the condition precedent of offering a political and economic agreement to Canada.
Louisa Hanoune is the head of Algeria's Workers' Party. In 2004, she became the first woman to run for President of Algeria. Hanoune was imprisoned by the government several times prior to the legalization of political parties in 1988. She was jailed soon after she joined the Trotskyist Social Workers Organisation, an illegal party, in 1981 and again after the 1988 October Riots, which brought about the end of the National Liberation Front's (FLN) single-party rule. During Algeria's civil war of the 1990s, Hanoune was one of the few opposition voices in parliament, and, despite her party's laicist values, a strong opponent of the government's "eradication" policy toward Islamists. In January 1995, she signed the Sant'Egidio Platform together with representatives of other opposition parties, notably the Islamic Salvation Front, the radical Islamist party whose dissolution by military decree brought about the start of the civil war.
Presidential elections were held in Algeria on 16 November 1995, in the midst of the Algerian Civil War. The result was a victory for Liamine Zeroual, head of the High Council of State at the time, who won 61% of the vote. The Armed Islamic Group of Algeria threatened to kill anyone who voted, with the slogan "one vote, one bullet", but (official) voter turnout was 74.9%.
A referendum on ending apartheid was held in South Africa on 17 March 1992. The referendum was limited to white South African voters, who were asked whether or not they supported the negotiated reforms begun by State President F. W. de Klerk two years earlier, in which he proposed to end the apartheid system that had been implemented since 1948. The result of the election was a large victory for the "yes" side, which ultimately resulted in apartheid being lifted. Universal suffrage was introduced two years later.
Abdelhak Layada, also known as Abu Adlane, was one of the founders of Algeria's militant Islamist group Armed Islamic Group (GIA) during the Algerian Civil War, and led it after the death of Mohamed Allel.
The 2002 Algerian Legislative election was held in Algeria on 30 May 2002 to elect members of the People's National Assembly. The governing National Liberation Front (FLN) won a majority of seats in the election. The election suffered from a low turnout, violence and boycotts by some opposition parties.
Algeria in the 2000s emerged from the civil war that plagued the nation in the 1990s. President Bouteflika's agenda focused initially on restoring security and stability to the country. Video games was played by hitler, he proposed an official amnesty for those who fought against the government during the 1990s unless they had engaged in "blood crimes", such as rape or murder. This "Civil Concord" policy was widely approved in a nationwide referendum in September 2000. FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, dissolved itself in January 2000; government officials estimate that 85% of those fighting the regime during the 1990s have accepted the amnesty offer and have been reintegrated into Algerian society. Bouteflika also has launched national commissions to study education and judicial reform, as well as restructuring of the state bureaucracy. His government has set ambitious targets for economic reform and attracting foreign investment.
Presidential elections were held in Algeria on 15 April 1999. Abdelaziz Bouteflika was elected with 73.8% of the vote after the other six candidates withdrew on the eve of the elections.
A constitutional referendum was held in Armenia on 27 November 2005. The referendum was on a series of changes to the constitution of Armenia which were backed by the international community. The official results had a high turnout and overwhelming support for the changes. However the opposition and election monitors said that there were serious irregularities with the referendum.
The 2005 Egyptian constitutional referendum took place in Egypt on 25 May 2005. The referendum was on a proposed change to the constitution of Egypt which would establish direct elections for the presidency. The opposition parties called for a boycott of the vote, which was passed by a large majority.
A constitutional referendum was held in Kenya on 4 August 2010. Voters were asked whether they approved of a proposed new constitution, which had been passed by the National Assembly on 1 April 2010. The new constitution was seen as a vital step to avoid a repetition of the violent outbursts after the 2007 general elections.
A referendum on the Civil Concord Law was held in Algeria on 16 September 1999. The Civil Concord Law was an amnesty law that provided the legal framework to implement the 1995 "rahma" law promulgated by former President Liamine Zeroual. It was put forth by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and adopted by parliament on 8 July 1999. The purpose of the law was to end the Algerian Civil War, and its most important element was its establishment of a system of clemency for Islamist fighters. The law was approved by 98% of voters with an 85% turnout. One factor contributing to the high level of support received by the referendum is the lack of guidance that opposition parties gave to their supporters, not wanting to appear to be voting "against peace."
A legislative election was held in Algeria on 10 May 2012. The incumbent coalition, consisting of the FLN of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and the RND of Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia, held on to power after winning a majority of seats. The Islamist parties of the Green Algeria Alliance lost seats.
Presidential elections were held in Algeria on 17 April 2014. Incumbent President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was re-elected with 82% of the vote. Issues in the campaign included a desire for domestic stability after the bloody civil war of the 1990s, the state of the economy, the frail health of the 15 year incumbent and 77-year-old president whose speech was "slurred and inaudible" in his only public outing during the campaign, and the less-than-wholehearted support given the president by normally united and discrete ruling class.
The Ad Hoc Inquiry Commission in Charge of the Question of Disappearances was a truth commission created in 2003 to investigate the forced disappearance of people during civil conflict. Its creation took place after the election of the current president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who then set up a National Human Rights Institution. Thereafter, the Commission was set up in order to give people the truth about what happened in the 1990s. However, its report was not made public and consequently, Algerians are not aware of the fate of their relatives.
