Commission of Inquiry in Algeria

Last updated

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 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.

Contents

Background

Since Algeria's independence in 1962, the army has played an important role in the political life of Algeria: [1]

"It was often sardonically remarked by Algerians that while every state has an army, in Algeria the army had a state." [1]

Military forces had fought against French rule for independence before an authoritarian regime was put in place in 1962. [1] It was led by the Front de Libération Nationale who worked with the army. [1] Until President Houari Boumédiène's death in 1978, the military forces had been under control. [1] Then, they came to power and chose "their" man as President, leaving to the FLN the sole task of running the administration". [2] In 1979, Chadli Bendjedid was elected president. In 1991, seeing that the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), an Islamic party, was about to win the next election, the army officially took power, leaving no place to political parties and cancelled the future election. President Chadli Bendjedid dissolved the People's National Assembly and resigned.

This marked the beginning of the civil war. A temporary government, the High Council of State, was put in place, initially led by Mohamed Boudiaf. But he was assassinated within six months and was succeeded by Ali Kafi. Kafi was in power until the dissolution of the High Council of State and was succeeded by Liamine Zéroual. During this period, extremist militias such as Groupe Islamique Armé rose [3] because they disagreed with the decisions taken about the election. They started to show violence against police, military and civilians, including terrorist attacks. Therefore, a state of emergency was declared. Islamic people began to disappear, to be killed and to be forced to move. Islamic people were chosen randomly. In other words, they could or could not be linked with any militias or act of violence.

In 1999, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was close to Boumédiène, was elected president and ended the war. Islamic groups agreed to lay down their weapons for Algeria to become at peace again. At the end of the conflict, more than 150,000 [4] deaths and 7,000 disappearances were registered. [4]

Purpose of the inquiry commission

In 2003, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika put in place a commission to investigate past crimes. [4] It was called “Ad Hoc Inquiry Commission in Charge of the Question of Disappearances". [4] It was made up of six commissioners, five men and one woman, all Algerian. [4] They were all chosen by the President. The aim of the commission was truth-seeking, especially to know what happened to the disappeared people. It was also meant to plan and give reparations to the families of the victims. [4] However, it is said that the commission functioned more like "a ‘management center' and an interface between families of the disappeared and the Algerian public administration" [1] than a commission of investigation.

Results of the commission

Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation

In 2005, the President called a referendum to approve the Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation (CPNR). [5] It came out of a previous law enacted in 1999 [3] which "promoted peace and national reconciliation". [1] With this law, Islamist groups agreed to stop violence, expecting a peaceful state. [1] The charter was approved in the referendum, with 96% in favour. [1] In effect, Algerians accepted amnesty. However, the opposition maintained that the approval was "the result of the government's programme of propaganda". [1]

Therefore, this charter aimed at peacemaking and granting amnesty to murderers and criminals. [6] [5] They all could get through it unscathed, whether they were considered terrorists or not. There were exceptions for crimes like "massacres, rapes, and bombings in public places." [5] The word "terrorism" does not appear in this charter. The past events were qualified as a "national tragedy", a way for the government not to denounce and condemn their criminals but also to promote peace. [7] The Algerian government has considered reconciliation through forgiveness. [1]

The charter also stipulates that anyone who continues to speak about this period will be imprisoned for a period from 3 to 5 years and have a fine to pay. [6]

"In 2017, a law was adopted which forbids to mention the "national tragedy" whether for analysis or reflective reason." said Karima Dirèche, a Franco-Algerian historian. [8]

Even journalists, foreign or not, can have trouble if they try to investigate and know what happened and what is being done to improve the situation. All of these measures emphasize a collective amnesia [8] [6] —people are forced not to talk about it.

However, the charter also returned to past arrests. Indeed, people who had been accused of terrorism and punished could be given their civil rights back or their relatives could be compensated. [1] [8] [5]

Reparations

The charter specifies that reparations should be made to the victims. [4] [5] Therefore, since 2006, the government has paid reparations of about USD 37 million. More than 2,000 families were paid, but only if they could provide a death certificate. [4] However, several families refused to acknowledge that their relatives were dead since no proof was given.

The focus on reparations was similar to the Equity and Reconciliation Commission in Morocco, where disappearances began under the rule of King Mohammed V after he assumed the throne in 1957. His son, King Hassan II, continued these policies. In the 1990s, under local and international pressure, he established an Advisory Council on Human Rights (CCDH) to investigate human rights violations and provide advice. In 2003, the CCDH asked for the creation of a truth commission to investigate violations in depth. The purpose of the commission was to provide recommendations, medical care, and money compensations to the victims. However, the commission did not give any names and was limited in its investigations. It concluded that 742 disappeared people were dead. Several cases remain unsolved with no answers. [4] Morocco began to offer reparations to victims.

Report

The commission reported in 2005, but only the President had access to the report. Nevertheless, Chairman Farouk Ksentini declared that the state was held responsible for about 6,146 disappearances and deaths. [4]

Criticisms

Cherida Khaddar reported that she had seen her brother and sister die in front of her eyes. [8] She is the head of the non-governmental organization, Djazairouna. She commemorates the victims of the civil war with other families on March 8 and tries and denounce the government but often ends at the police station and is mistreated. [8] Djazairouna is an association made to help victims of terrorism in Algeria. The victims can receive any type of help: clothes, food or money, from insofar as possible. Members of associations also try to visit the victims who have been hospitalized. They bring a psychological support and accompany them in all the steps they undertake, judicial or not. [9]

"Bouteflika in promising peace to the Algerians had 'ended the dreams of truth and justice for thousands of families of the disappeared'" [3]

This is what Nacéra Dutour argued about the charter, illustrating the victims' state of mind. The victims and their family disagreed with the outcome of the Inquiry Commission and rejected the charter. [1] Dutour founded SOS Disparus, an association for the disappeared, chaired by her mother Fatima Yous. [3] Before creating this organization, Dutour had worked with international groups in France. [3] Her involvement in this crisis is due to the fact that her son had been arrested while fasting during Ramadan whereas he was not involved in politics and tried to become a taxi driver. [3] Every Wednesday, her association demonstrates in front of the Parliament to claim their rights. [3] They called for an efficient commission which would denounce what had happened and condemn the perpetrators. [5] They wanted justice. As Cherifa Khaddar points out:

“We want the courts to deal with those who ordered and those who carried out acts of violence, even if Mr. Bouteflika later pardons them,” [5]

Nacéra Dutour adds:

"[a referendum could not] 'be the means by which a government evades its international obligations.'". [3]

At the end, apart from monetary compensation, Algerian people have not obtained redress. As a consequence, a lot of families are stuck between two states of mind: remaining silent about what happened or denouncing it and taking the risk of being arrested and imprisoned.

Many Algerians continue to seek the truth about the disappeared even if no retributive justice takes place. [1] On the other hand, prosecuting is a hard task since there is not enough evidence to prove someone's responsibility. Farouk Ksentini, the President of the National Consultative Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, stated that most information about disappearances come from the families, with very few witnesses. [1] Moreover, with the report of the commission not being public, the issue is the "Algerian authorities" obstruction of any investigation, even non-judicial, into past atrocities." [1]

Women's role in Algerian society

Women play a significant role in Algeria. Their place in Algerian society goes back to Algerian War for independence where they could be solicited to place bombs in the Europeans areas. Akila Ouared, who was an agent in Front de Libération National (FLN) during Algerian War reported:

“We women were always there at the helm.” [3]

Nowadays, as only men disappeared and were killed during the civil war, women have to take their position in society. [3] This is the reason why women's groups have arisen, such as Djazairouna and SOS Disparus.

International involvement

During the Algerian Civil War, no countries intervened because it was thought that the army was doing the right thing in order to prevent the rise of Islamic groups. [1] Countries such as France or the United States was afraid of the impact of groups as Islamic Salvation Front on Western affairs: "the FIS would pose serious threats to the West's economic and security interests in the region". [1]

Nevertheless, in 2007, a conference called "Truth, Peace, and Conciliation" was held. [1] The Algerians invited international experts to the conference, but they were refused visas or otherwise barred from entry. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Algeria</span> Historical development of Algeria

Much of the history of Algeria has taken place on the fertile coastal plain of North Africa, which is often called the Maghreb. North Africa served as a transit region for people moving towards Europe or the Middle East, thus, the region's inhabitants have been influenced by populations from other areas, including the Carthaginians, Romans, and Vandals. The region was conquered by the Muslims in the early 8th century AD, but broke off from the Umayyad Caliphate after the Berber Revolt of 740. During the Ottoman period, Algeria became an important state in the Mediterranean sea which led to many naval conflicts. The last significant events in the country's recent history have been the Algerian War and Algerian Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">President of Algeria</span> Head of state and chief executive of Algeria

The president of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Algerian People's National Armed Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdelaziz Bouteflika</span> President of Algeria from 1999 to 2019

Abdelaziz Bouteflika was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as President of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ahmed Ouyahia</span> Former Prime Minister of Algeria

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. Ouyahia resigned as Prime Minister in March 2019 following President Bouteflika's announcement that he would not seek reelection, and Ouyahia was arrested in June 2019 for crimes related to corruption. He was later convicted and is currently serving 19 years in jail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Movement of Society for Peace</span> Political party in Algeria

The Movement of Society for Peace, sometimes known by its shortened form Hamas is an Islamic party in Algeria, led by Mahfoud Nahnah until his death in 2003. Its current leader is Abderrazak Makri. It is aligned with the international Muslim Brotherhood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Liberation Front (Algeria)</span> Political party in Algeria

The National Liberation Front is a nationalist political party in Algeria. It was the principal nationalist movement during the Algerian War and the sole legal and ruling political party of the Algerian state until other parties were legalised in 1989. The FLN was established in 1954 from a split in the Movement for the Triumph of Democratic Liberties from members of the Special Organisation paramilitary; its armed wing, the National Liberation Army, participated in the Algerian War from 1954 to 1962. After the Évian Accords of 1962, the party purged internal dissent and ruled Algeria as a one-party state. After the 1988 October Riots and the Algerian Civil War (1991–2002) against Islamist groups, the FLN was reelected to power in the 2002 Algerian legislative election, and has generally remained in power ever since, although sometimes needing to form coalitions with other parties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louisa Hanoune</span> Algerian politician

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2004 Algerian presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in Algeria on 8 April 2004. Incumbent President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was re-elected with 85% of the vote.

The Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation was a charter proposed by Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in an attempt to bring closure to the Algerian Civil War by offering an amnesty for most violence committed in it. The referendum on it was held on September 29, 2005, passing with 97%, and the charter was implemented as law on February 28, 2006.

The Equity and Reconciliation Commission is a Moroccan human rights and truth commission created on January 7, 2004, when King Mohammed VI signed a Dahir. The commission was established to reconcile victims of human rights abuses, such as torture, forced disappearances and arbitrary arrests, committed by the government and high-ranking officials during the Years of Lead, with the State. The commission investigates events from 1956 to 1999, spanning the reign of the two previous monarchs. The proclaimed objectives of the commission were the protection and the promotion of the human rights in Morocco.

Abdelhak Layada, also known as Abu Adlane, is 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 working conditions of journalists in Algeria have evolved since the 1962 independence. After 1990, the Code of Press was suppressed, allowing for greater freedom of press. However, with the civil war in the 1990s, more than 70 journalists were assassinated by terrorists. Sixty journalists were killed between 1993 and 1998 in Algeria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000s in Algeria</span>

The 2000s in Algeria emerged from the 'Black Decade' of the 1990s. The 'Black Decade' was characterised by a civil war beginning in 1991 and ending at the beginning of the following decade in 2002. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who is accredited with ending the civil war, continued to be in power throughout the 2000s following his election in 1999. Despite being in power for 20 years and being Algeria's longest running president, Bouteflika's politics have been widely opposed and contested, with accusations from the BBC “of widespread corruption and state repression”. In April 2019 Bouteflika officially resigned from his position as president after months of public protest and loss of the army's support. The 82 Year old President was widely considered unfit for the role after experiencing a stroke in 2013. His resignation was reported by the BBC to have been met with "huge celebrations".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1999 Algerian presidential election</span>

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2005 Algerian national reconciliation referendum</span>

The 2005 Algerian national reconciliation referendum took place in Algeria on 29 September 2005. The referendum was held on a Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation which had been drawn up to try to bring closure to the Algerian Civil War. The official results showed an overwhelming vote in favour on a high turnout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1999 Algerian Civil Concord referendum</span>

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."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Truth Commission</span>

In Brazil, the National Truth Commission investigated human rights violations of the period of 1946–1988 - in particular by the authoritarian military dictatorship that ruled Brazil from April 1, 1964 to March 15, 1985.

The Commission of Inquiry to Locate the Persons Disappeared during the Panchayat Period (1990–1991) is a truth commission established in Nepal in 1990 after the end of the autocratic Panchayat Regime by the first post-Panchayat Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattharai. The commission was set up to examine allegations of human rights violations and inquire about enforced disappearances during the Panchayat system from 1961 to 1990. A report was officially submitted to the government in 1991, but it was made public only in 1994. The commission identified 35 persons disappeared on about one hundred studied cases. However, no alleged perpetrators were judged.

Peru's Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a truth and reconciliation commission established by President Alejandro Toledo to investigate the human rights abuses committed during the internal conflict in Peru between 1980s and 1990s. The TRC was a response to the violent internal conflict between 1980 and 2000 during the administration of Presidents Fernando Belaúnde (1980–1985), Alan García (1985–1990), and Alberto Fujimori (1990–2000). The commission's mandate was to provide a record of human rights and international humanitarian law violations committed in Peru between May 1980 and November 2000, as well as recommend mechanisms to promote and strengthen human rights. The TRC reported on the estimated 70 000 deaths, assassinations, torture, disappearances, displacement, employment of terrorist methods and other human rights violations executed by the State, Shining Path, and the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement. The report concluded that there is both institutional and individual accountability, as well as identifying racial and cultural factors that became a catalyst for conflict.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Arnould, Valerie (2007-05-30). "Amnesty, peace and reconciliation in Algeria". Conflict, Security & Development. 7 (2): 227–253. doi:10.1080/14678800701333028. ISSN   1467-8802. S2CID   152784342.
  2. ↑ Washington-Brown, Linda Joyce (September 2002). "A Message From the FLN President: Join Us and Bring A Friend". Nurse Educator. 27 (5): 241. doi:10.1097/00006223-200209000-00014. ISSN   0363-3624.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kristianasen, Wendy (2006). "Truth & Justice after a Brutal Civil War: Algeria: The Women Speak". Review of African Political Economy. 33 (108): 346–351. JSTOR   4007174.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Commission of Inquiry: Algeria". United States Institute of Peace. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "A flawed charter". The Economist. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  6. 1 2 3 Kawakiby Channel (2015-10-30), Processus de Justice Transitionnelle : Cherifa Khaddar (Algérie) , retrieved 2018-11-08
  7. ↑ "Mémoire interdite en Algérie". Le Monde diplomatique (in French). 2017-08-01. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Les conséquences de l'amnésie forcée après la "décennie noire" algérienne". rts.ch (in French). Retrieved 2018-11-08.
  9. ↑ ":: Association Djazairouna". www.djazairouna.ranahna.dz. Archived from the original on 2018-07-17. Retrieved 2018-11-08.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.