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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 January 2000 Issue No. 465
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters 'Optimistic about Algeria'
By Khaled Dawoud
It was definitely a surprising scene for many Algerians and outside observers: bearded men coming down in hundreds from the mountains, handing their weapons to army officers and shaking hands with the same people they fought against for eight years.
The partial amnesty law proposed by Algerian President Abdel-Aziz Bouteflika in July, and approved by a 98 per cent majority in a public referendum in September, officially expired at midnight on 13 January. What is known in Algeria as the "civil reconciliation law", is hoped to be the first step towards putting an end to the ongoing bloodshed that has claimed the lives of more than 100,000 people, according to Bouteflika. The Islamic militant's rebellion started in January 1992 after the powerful Algerian army intervened and cancelled the first round of parliamentary elections which had been clearly won by the now-outlawed Islamic Salvation Front (FIS).
Bouteflika vowed that he would launch a "merciless" campaign against militants who refuse to give up their weapons under the terms of the amnesty. Two days before the 13 January deadline, Bouteflika granted a special amnesty to members of the FIS military wing, the Islamic Salvation Army (AIS) led by Madani Mezrag.
In return, the armed group agreed to dissolve itself in exchange for promises that its members will be allowed to reintegrate fully into Algerian society. Mezrag, who has been involved in negotiations with army generals since 1996, declared a unilateral cease-fire in July 1997 in the hope of ending the confrontation with the government and reaching a political settlement. These efforts by the AIS were also made to try to differentiate his armed group from more extremist organisations, especially the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), which has been held responsible for some of the worst massacres of civilians since 1992. GIA and two other small groups have announced their rejection of the civil reconciliation law and vowed to continue their anti-government attacks.
The special amnesty granted to the AIS, however, came after difficult negotiations. According to the "civil reconciliation law", defecting army soldiers who joined the militants were not to be granted an amnesty.
Mezrag, however, insisted that the special amnesty given to the group by Bouteflika should include all AIS fighters. Following the intervention of top Algerian army and intelligence officers, a settlement was reached allowing nearly 2,000 AIS members to restore their "normal" lives and return to their towns and villages.
After the deadline for the amnesty expired, Algerian newspapers reported that the army had deployed thousands of troops backed by armed helicopter in areas which had been hotbeds of violence, in preparation for an offensive. One Algerian newspaper, Al-Maghreb, reported that the army had delayed the attack to allow thousands of militants who accepted the amnesty to disband.
Meanwhile, negotiations led by army officers to convince Hassan Hattab, leader of the armed Salafist Group for Dawa and Jihad, to give up his weapons and benefit from the amnesty, had reportedly failed due to internal dissension within the group.
Press reports said that three members of the Salafi group who opposed the civil reconciliation law shot dead a mosque preacher who was leading the mediation effort. On Monday, Algerian newspapers reported that members of the group, who wanted to confirm that they will continue their armed rebellion, killed two soldiers in an ambush.
There were also reports of similar splits within the FIS despite the deal reached between Mezrag and the army. FIS leading figures opposed to the deal were presumed to be behind unconfirmed reports that one of Mezrag's aides tried to assassinate him following a heated discussion. The same figures also claimed that Mezrag was planning to seek asylum in Saudi Arabia, but this report was denied by both Saudi and Algerian officials. FIS figures opposed to the deal were particularly angered by the assassination of Abdel-Qader Hachani, known as the FIS' third in command, in November. FIS leader Abbassi Madani reportedly wrote an angry letter to one of his aides stating that FIS and AIS leaders should differentiate between reconciliation and surrender. But other FIS figures supporting the deal denied that Madani wrote any such letter and claimed that reports on this issue were false in light of the fact that Madani had repeatedly expressed in recent years that he favored reaching a settlement.
Rabeh Kabir, a FIS leader in exile who announced his support of the truce reached between the AIS and the army, did not deny that there were differences within the group over how much had been gained by the deal with Bouteflika. He added that he hoped that Bouteflika would take more courageous steps to widen the support for the reconciliation process by lifting the house arrest imposed on FIS leader Madani and releasing thousands of the organisations jailed members, led by Madani's deputy Ali Belhadj.
Bouteflika had repeatedly stated in recent interviews that he would not allow FIS to operate publicly again as it was outlawed by a court order. However, Bouteflika had made some indication that FIS members will be able to restore their role in public life through other channels.
Kabir, in a recently published interview, did not deny that one of the options considered by the group was to change its title and work under a different name. Some observers indicated that a recently formed party, headed by former Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Taleb Al-Ibrahimi who is known to sympathise with FIS, might be one of the options.
Algerian newspapers reported on Tuesday that 4,200 people took advantage of the civil reconciliation law since it was first announced in July. According to Al-Khabar daily, 2,400 of this number belonged to Mezrag's AIS while the rest belonged to GIA and other militant groups. However, other Algerian newspapers said that GIA members who benefited from the law were mostly elderly, while others suffered health problems and some were women.
Meanwhile, many world leaders and international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), praised the steps taken by Bouteflika. The Algerian president is well aware of the fact that the amnesty along with the restoration of security will not end Algeria's problems. Economic reform and finding jobs for millions of young unemployed Algerians are as much of a priority as peace and security.
Michel Camadessus, head of the IMF, said he was optimistic about the future of Algeria. In another encouraging sign, France reopened its cultural centre in the capital on Sunday. The centre had been closed since 1993 because of the ongoing violence and attacks against foreigners.
