Book review: Memoirs of an #Algerian II (1/2)

Two days ago Algeria has celebrated the 40th anniversary of the hydrocarbons’ nationalisations. Last year’s celebrations coincided with Sonatrach’s latest known of financial scandal which led, among other things, to the dismissal of one of Bouteflika’s best friends, Chakib Khelil. Things are different this year. Khelil’s successor, Youcef Yousfi, held the celebrations in Hassi Messaoud; and the city’s youths also celebrated the event by blocking the access to the oil plants. They demanded a share in the jobs that are created by the oil exploitation activity. Though the problem is more complex, it cannot be denied that the people of Southern Algeria are not the biggest beneficiaries of the hydrocarbons industry.

This anniversary triggered the idea of this post. A review of a book which talks of this very special and unique period of independent Algeria which witnessed this great achievement.

Ahmed Taleb-Ibrahimi‘s last political appearance in Algeria was in 1999 as a candidate to the presidential elections. He was then portrayed by some of his opponents as a retrograde Islamist who would gather former FIS sympathisers and replace the dissolved party (his party, WAFA, was never approved by the system). This accusation was backed by at least three points: he was supported by Mohand Said, he was Bachir Ibrahimi‘s son and he was Boumediene‘s minister of education when the Arabization process had started. Then Taleb, along all the other candidates opposing Bouteflika, withdrew his candidacy because it became clear that the system had already chosen Algeria’s current president. This withdrawal led Bouteflika’s supporters and many observers to accuse him and the other candidates of executing the DRS’s plan, the aim of which being to reduce Bouteflika’s influence after his plebiscite. Another attempt to candidacy in the 2004 elections wasn’t approved by Zerhouni’s services. Since then, Taleb decided to put an end to his political activities and dedicate his time to writing his memoirs.

French national identity: torn between the beret and the burqa

Good old Europe is growing worried about the potential consequences of its immigration policies. Old habits die hard: ancient, refined, aristocratic Europe cannot digest well the proliferation of the immigrant hoi polloi who seem to mostly originate from Muslim countries and from the lowest socio-economic classes of these countries on top of that! What’s with those odd looking people who talk in a funny way and whose women wear black overalls and hide their faces! Some alien race is taking over Europe! France is one European country which takes these issues very seriously indeed as proven by current president Sarkozy’s recent initiative to relaunch the debate on what it really means to be French. Apart from the disturbing fact that the French themselves have realized via this ‘national debate’ that even they do not all agree on what it really means to be French (some say it’s about wearing berets and buying baguettes, whereas others hint or sometimes openly threaten that it’s about reconciling being Muslim with the values of the Republic), this initiative seems to have backfired and upset many committed voters who now are not really sure if they’re French or not. Oh mon Dieu! Given that you cannot prove a negative, it is now up to the French to prove they’re French! It would appear that a beret-less head is prone to all sorts of headaches and wind-chills!