Algeria Approves Legislation Labeling French Colonisation a Criminal Act
The Algerian legislature has unanimously approved a law stating France’s colonisation of the nation a crime and called for an apology and compensation.
Legislators, gathered in parliament wearing scarves in the colours of the national flag, shouted “vive l'Algérie” on the session day as they applauded the passage of the bill, which declares that the former colonial power holds “legal responsibility for its history of colonisation in Algeria and the atrocities it caused”.
A Diplomatic Strain and a Political Gesture
The two countries are embroiled in a significant diplomatic crisis and analysts say that while Algeria’s action is largely symbolic, it is still politically significant.
“a clear message, both domestically and internationally, that Algeria’s national memory is not erasable nor negotiable.”
The legislation lists the “atrocities of French colonisation”, which include atomic tests, extrajudicial killings, “torture” and the “widespread looting of national wealth”.
Demand for Compensation
It asserts that “full and fair compensation for all physical and psychological harms caused by French colonisation is an fundamental entitlement of the Algerian state and people”.
French governance over Algeria from 1830 until 1962 was a period marked by mass killings and large-scale deportations, culminating in the bloody independence war from 1954 to 1962.
- Algerian officials says the war claimed 1.5 million lives.
- French historians estimate the fatalities at 500,000 in all, 400,000 of them Algerian.
Official Reaction and Academic Perspective
The head of state, Emmanuel Macron, has in the past acknowledged the colonisation of Algeria as a “grave injustice” but has declined to offer an apology.
Asked last week about the vote, a diplomatic representative said he would not discuss “political debates taking place in foreign countries”.
A researcher in colonial history, commented that “legally, this law has little international force and therefore is not enforceable for France”. However, “its diplomatic and emblematic importance is considerable: it marks a break in the relationship with France in terms of memory,” he said.
