Algeria

[Mike Calvert <mike.calvert@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Algeria:
My only knowledge is of the PT, the section of the lambertist group in
Algeria.

Louisa Hanoune was elected to parliament back in 1998, and in The organizer
for february/march 1998 there appeared a double page spread by Saoudi
Rached entitled Bakarat! Six years is Enough! A report on Algeria and the
Workers Party. It was a double page spread and details the rise and line of
the PT in Algeria. I thought it good then and it is good even today.
Get it from Alan Benjamin or one of his co-thinkers. hanoune and three
other PT leaders were elected to what themselves called a fradulent
parliament with a 30% abstention rate.

I will add more later, but must go and make tea now.

I will try and type it up and put it out even though I may not agree with
it today.

Mike

Date: Tue, 10 Jul 2001 09:02:48 -0400
From: Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Forwarded from Greg Dunkel

I've written a couple of long articles for Workers World on the struggle in
Algeria, from a Marxist perspective, as well asa few news pieces.

Here are the URL's:

http://www.workers.org/ww/2001/algeria0517.html  (May)
http://www.workers.org/ww/2001/algeria0607.html  (June).

All the evidence I've seen points to the Islamicists, except for a small
number of diehards, joining the government, which even has Islamic
ministers. The Berbers are pushing for recognition of their language
Tamazight as official and have long-standing cultural traditions against
women wearing veils.  The Islamicists have and have had extremedly
slight influence among the Berbers, especially since two of their main
tenents are the use of Arabic and vieling women.

Over half the North African immigrants in France are Berber, and they
have maintained their ties.  I would expect any political party in France
that is active and progressive would have some impact on the movement
in Algeria.

Six or so of the most prominent Algerian newspapers -- some official and
conservative, others "independent" -- have websites which are almost
entirely in French.  Both Le Monde and Liberation also have devoted a lot
of attention to what is happening in Algeria, natchurally.  The city of
Tizi
Ouzou also has a website with great content, close ties to Berber
organizers and some interesting pictures from time to time.

I also look at the website for the Free Officers Movement of Algeria,
which is a useful, informative but politically tricky site.

I will send anyone who asks me my list, but let me emphasize that they
are almost entirely in French, with an occassional bit of Arabic and a
very occasional bit of English.

/greg



Louis Proyect
Marxism mailing list: http://www.marxmail.org

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 10 Jul 2001 10:06:44 -0400
From: Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Forwarded from Yves-Marie Quemener (Algeria)

There are (at least) two trotskyist organizations in Algeria: the Parti des
Travailleurs, led by the very popular woman Louiza Hanoun (spelling?), is
in
relation with the  Lambertists, and the Parti Socialiste des Travailleurs
is
in relation with the United Secretariat. The PST seems to have some
influence in Kabylie. Your AFP paper talks about the first group. On the
website of LCR, you can find a long paper in french about the current
situation in Algeria: www.lcr-rouge.org then follows "Dans Rouge cette
semaine". There are other papers in the archives.

Yves-Marie Quemener

Louis Proyect
Marxism mailing list: http://www.marxmail.org