Algeria’s parliament has unanimously approved a piece of legislation stating France’s colonisation of the nation a criminal act and demanded an apology and reparations.
Legislators, gathered in parliament wearing scarves in the colours of the Algerian flag, shouted “long live Algeria” on the session day as they celebrated the approval of the bill, which declares that France holds “legal responsibility for its colonial past in Algeria and the atrocities it caused”.
A Significant Strain and a Political Gesture
The both nations are embroiled in a significant diplomatic crisis and analysts note that while Algeria’s move is mostly symbolic, it is still a major political statement.
“a clear message, both domestically and internationally, that Algeria’s national memory is neither erasable nor negotiable.”
The law enumerates the “atrocities of colonial rule”, which encompass nuclear tests, summary executions, “physical and psychological torture” and the “widespread looting of resources”.
Call for Reparations
It asserts that “full and fair reparation for all material and moral damages caused by colonial rule is an fundamental entitlement of the state and people”.
France’s rule over Algeria from the 19th century until 1962 was a period characterized by widespread deaths and large-scale deportations, all the way up to the violent war of independence from 1954 to 1962.
- Algeria states the war killed 1.5 million people.
- Historians in France estimate the fatalities at half a million in total, 400,000 of them from Algeria.
French Reaction and Historical View
The head of state, President Macron, has previously acknowledged the colonial era of Algeria as a “crime against humanity” but has stopped short of an official apology.
Asked last week about the vote, a diplomatic spokesperson stated he would not comment on “internal political matters taking place in other nations”.
Hosni Kitouni in the history of colonisation, said that “legally, this legislation has little international force and therefore is not enforceable for the French state”. However, “its diplomatic and emblematic significance is considerable: it marks a break in the ties with France in terms of historical memory,” he added.
