France: the National Assembly votes on a resolution condemning the “massacre” of Algerians on October 17, 1961
The French National Assembly approved on Thursday March 28 a proposed resolution which “
condemns the bloody and murderous repression of Algerians committed under the authority of the prefect of police Maurice Papon on October 17, 1961
” in Paris, during which around thirty and more than 200 peaceful protesters died, according to historians.
Algerians arrested during the peaceful demonstration, organized in Paris on October 17, 1961. AFP
By: RFI with AFP
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A “
vote for history
”. This is how the ecologist Sabrina Sebaihi welcomed the adoption of the proposal for this resolution. In detail, the text also requests "
the inclusion of a day of commemoration of the massacre
"
of Algerians on October 17, 1961
in
the "agenda of French national days and official ceremonies
".
The bill carried by Sabrina Sebaihi and the Renaissance deputy, Julie Delpech, was approved in a sparse hemicycle by 67 deputies, mainly from the left and from Renaissance – 11 voting against, from the ranks of the National Rally.
“
Rewriting work to the nearest comma
”
For Sabrina Sebaihi, this vote represents the “
first step
” of “
work for the recognition of this colonial crime, for the recognition of this state crime
”. This term
“
state crime
”
nevertheless does not appear in the proposed resolution, the result of meticulous writing work with the presidential party and the Élysée to arrive at a consensual text.
Indeed, the writing of the text was the subject of “
rewriting work down to the comma
” with the presidency to arrive at a version that suited the executive, in a context where questions of memory still weigh heavily. in relations between France and Algeria. “
We landed on a text where there is no notion of state crime
,” Sabrina Sebaihi clarified on Wednesday.
The vote of the deputies comes a few weeks after the announcement by the Élysée of a state visit by the
Algerian President
, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, "
at the end of September-beginning of October
".
🇫🇷🇩🇿 Today, the National Assembly recognized and honored in the Republic the innocent Algerian victims of #October17, 1961 and their families.
France, proud of its history and lucid about its past, will have stood up for memory, for the victims and for… pic.twitter.com/LCWvQ7dJZk
— Sabrina Sebaihi (@SabrinaSebaihi) March 28, 2024
A demonstration “
repressed with violence
”
63 years ago, some 30,000 Algerians who came to demonstrate peacefully in Paris suffered violent repression from the police. The official toll of three deaths and around sixty injured is far below the estimates of historians, who record “
at least several dozen
” deaths.
To describe the events of
this fateful October 17, 1961
, the Minister Delegate in charge of Territorial Communities, Dominique Faure, mentioned in her speech this Thursday a demonstration "
repressed with violence by the services acting under the authority of the prefect of police of the 'period, Maurice Papon
', during which '
in addition to numerous wounded, several dozen (people) were killed, their bodies thrown into the Seine
'.
Memory work
“
Let us today at this podium have a thought for these victims and their families hit hard by the spiral of violence
,” added the minister, under the eyes of representatives of the groups who have been pleading for this recognition for several years. She also recalled the work of memory already accomplished to recognize the massacre. In 2012, President François Hollande paid “
tribute to the victims
” of a “
bloody repression
” which fell on these women and men demonstrating for “
the right to independence
”.
His successor
Emmanuel Macron
declared on October 17, 2021 that “
the crimes committed on October 17, 1961 under the authority of Maurice Papon are inexcusable for the Republic
”. Paris then announced in December of the same year expanded access to archives on the Algerian War (1954-1962).
Minister Dominique Faure, however, expressed reservations about the establishment of a day of commemoration, stressing that three dates already existed to “
commemorate what happened during the Algerian war
”. Reservations shared by the MoDem and Horizons groups, members of the majority, for whom the “
historical work must continue
”.
Also read: Massacre of October 17, 1961: 60 years of fighting for recognition of a state crime
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