The Algerian legislature has passed with full support a piece of legislation declaring French colonial rule of the country a crime and called for an apology and reparations.
Lawmakers, standing in the chamber adorned with scarves in the colors of the Algerian flag, chanted “long live Algeria” on Wednesday as they applauded the approval of the bill, which affirms that the former colonial power holds “accountability for its colonial past in Algeria and the atrocities it caused”.
A Diplomatic Crisis and a Political Gesture
The two countries are embroiled in a major diplomatic crisis and observers say that while Algeria’s action is mostly gestural, it is still politically significant.
“an unambiguous signal, both internally and internationally, that the nation's historical memory is neither erasable nor subject to negotiation.”
The law lists the “crimes of French colonisation”, which encompass nuclear tests, summary executions, “physical and psychological torture” and the “widespread looting of resources”.
Call for Reparations
It states that “complete and just reparation for all physical and psychological harms caused by colonial rule is an fundamental entitlement of the state and its people”.
French governance over Algeria from 1830 until 1962 was a period characterized by widespread deaths and large-scale deportations, culminating in the bloody independence war from the mid-1950s to 1962.
- Algeria says the conflict killed 1.5 million lives.
- Historians in France estimate the fatalities at half a million in all, 400,000 of them Algerian.
Official Reaction and Academic View
The head of state, President Macron, has in the past recognized the colonial era of Algeria as a “grave injustice” but has stopped short of an official apology.
Questioned recently about the parliamentary decision, a French foreign ministry spokesperson stated he would not discuss “internal political matters taking place in other nations”.
A researcher in colonial history, said that “legally, this legislation has no international scope and therefore is not enforceable for France”. However, “its political and symbolic importance is considerable: it marks a break in the ties with France in terms of memory,” he said.