On February 10, 2019, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, 82, announces his intention to run for a 5th term at the head of Algeria, during the presidential election scheduled for April 18, 2019.
A few days later, on February 16, a peaceful and spontaneous rally bringing together thousands of demonstrators in Kherrata, 300 km east of Algiers, protests against the possibility of a 5th term of the president, in power for two decades and very weakened since a stroke in 2013. On February 22, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in major Algerian cities and in Algiers to force Abdelaziz Bouteflika to give up running for the presidential election. It is the beginning of Hirak ("movement" in Arabic).
Since then, every Friday, as well as on Tuesdays for students, Algerians demonstrate peacefully against the government to demand a real total break with the political "system" in place since independence in 1962.
Despite important security measures, the Hirak has grown and spread throughout Algeria, as here in Oran. Algerians organize themselves through social networks and reclaim the streets of the country. Hard-hitting, humorous, sometimes even squeaky, the slogans brandished during the demonstrations against the power compete in inventiveness and arouse admiration abroad.
Under pressure, power procrastinates. In a message to the nation, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika first announced, on March 11, his decision not to run for a 5th term. Then, gradually released by the army, the one who was thought to be indestructible gave in and resigned on April 2, while the president of the Council of Nation (Upper House), Abdelkader Bensalah, was appointed acting president on April 9.
Despite the resignation of Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the demonstrators remain mobilized believing that it is only a "half-victory". In order to prevent the former faithful of the deposed president from managing the transition, the Hirak demands the establishment of transitional institutions, and refuses that the "system" organizes the presidential election, the previous polls having been marked by the demonstrators by electoral fraud. The latter therefore claim the postponement of the presidential election then scheduled for July 4. In early June, the Constitutional Council invalidated the files of the only two candidates and de facto canceled the ballot. A new date is set for December 12.
On September 25, a military court sentences Saïd Bouteflika, the influential brother and advisor to the ousted president, and two former intelligence chiefs to 15 years in prison for "attacking the authority of the army" and "conspiracy against the state authority. " Their sentences were confirmed on appeal on February 10, 2020. Two former prime ministers, Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal, tried for corruption, received 15 and 12 years in prison respectively in December. Other former political leaders and big bosses close to Abdelaziz Bouteflika are also condemned.
Believing that the "fundamental demands" of the movement have been "entirely" satisfied with the departure of Abdelaziz Boutaflika, the Algerian government launched a wave of arrests against demonstrators and Algerian personalities. Among them, Lakhdar Bouregaa, a respected veteran of the War of Independence, 86 years old. He will not be released until after 6 months of pretrial detention, on January 2, 2020. More than 200 opponents in total have been released, most since the beginning of the year, according to the National Committee for the Liberation of Prisoners (CNLD ). But the latter identified, in early February, "142 demonstrators in pre-trial detention and 1,300 others who are the subject of legal proceedings for facts related to the presidential election campaign".
After practically ten months of a massive and unprecedented popular protest, the Algerians are called to the polls, on December 12, in order to elect a successor to Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in a presidential election imposed by the army and perceived as a survival maneuver of the diet. On December 6, the last weekly demonstration before the election, gathered a huge crowd, showing the extent of the rejection. For Hirak, the five candidates selected by the electoral commission are all from the "Bouteflika system".
On December 13, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, former Prime Minister and loyal to Abdelaziz Bouteflika, won the presidential election boycotted by the opposition and marked by record abstention (over 60%). During his swearing in, he undertakes to begin consultations quickly to draft a new Constitution, to fight corruption and to diversify the economy.
General Ahmed Gaïd Salah, who has become de facto the strongman of Algeria since the resignation on April 2 of Abdelaziz Bouteflika, died on December 23, a few days after the entry into office of the new president Abdelmadjid Tebboune, known as a of his relatives. According to observers, his disappearance will not necessarily affect the central place occupied by the army in the Algerian political system, which is contested by the street.
A strong mobilization is expected during the first anniversary of Hirak, which, without formal structure, wonders about the procedure to follow at the start of its 2nd year. In particular on the relevance and the modalities of possible discussions with the authorities, but also on the form that the challenge must take in the future.
The France 24 week summary invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribeDownload the app
google-play-badge_FR