At the same time government ministers have again been referring to the country being "swamped" by immigrants and legislation, condemned by Amnesty International and some Bishops, has been introduced to make it even more difficult for refugees to enter Britain. Before the elections
HE electoral law imposed by the government has led to a significant stir of debate, as much between the government and the ruling National Liberation Front (FLN) in parliament as among the opposition.
All this noise is artificial. Both the various currents in the regime and most of the so-called democratic parties — apart from Ait Ahmed's Front of Socialist Forces (FFS) — are in favour of majority voting in two rounds. Most of them have thereby supported their own disappearance from the electoral scene.
Only the Socialist Workers Party (PST) has broken this consensus, fighting for proportional representation, with the support of some thirty other small organization.
The fundamentalists, meanwhile, have come out for a hybrid system which tops up those with the highest votes - this gave them good results on June 12, 1991. But in any case, the debate is a fraud. Once the big democratic parties grasped that the aim of the government at the
BRITAIN / ALGERIA
The response of the left has been slow and weak. The most active anti-fascist group, Anti-Fascist Action (AFA) consists of a number of small ultra-left organizations and puts a lot of emphasis on physical confrontation.
A more promising body is the AntiRacist Alliance (ARA) which was recently launched by Ken Livingstone MP. Labour Party Black Sections and the Black Liaison Group. Its fundamental problem is that some forces within it seem determined to use exclusionary and bureaucratic methods.
But it is the most important attempt to begin a national campaign against the rising fascist and racist danger and has won the support of important figures in the Labour movement and of many Black organizations. * Algerian recent elections on June 27 was to cut the FIS down to size in the National People's Assembly (APN), they accepted the big swindle, according to which the dispersed populations of the South are strongly represented, those of the countryside moderately represented and the cities under-represented. Obviously it is these same parties that are the first victims, since all new political phenomena find their first and strongest expression in the cities.
Some parties, including that of Ben Bella, have proposed a "third candidate in the second round" rather than two. But his arithmetic is as bad as the others' *. When the law was voted through, several figures in the regime realized that the two-round ballot could cut both ways, and that, even if it won, the FLN would have problems.since it would not have the absolute majority and could see all its potential allies vanish. • Another subject of debate over the electoral law is that of proxy voting, which effectively prevents married women from voting, allowing husbands to vote on their behalf.
Two years ago, the struggle of women for the right to vote was totally ignored in the media and by the big democratic parties.
Now people have suddenly woken up to the fact that there are 3.5 million married women, who may have their votes confiscated.
This has led to panic, and a conflict between the prime minister Sid Ahmed Ghozali and the APN, which has tried to show its independence of the government by proposing small amendments to this part of the electoral law.
In the end, the Constitutional Council, an unrepresentative body which has, in general, little to do, examined the law and removed the right to vote on behalf of other members of the family on presentation of the family book. Thus, women now have the right to vote, even though they may well not use it, being prevented from leaving the home. In any case their vote cannot now simply be manipulated.
1 What is your attitude to the FIS? If its main leaders are imprisoned, will you call for a boycott of the elections or not?
We should remember that the FIS saw a conflict in the aftermath of the arrest of Abassi Madani and Ali Belhadj, on June 30, 1991, between its historic leaders on the one hand and some lesser known figures on the other.
The former, who advocated a hardline, and even a military-guerilla orientation for the FIS, thought that the general strike called by the FIS might end in their humiliation, and that it would be better to stop it.
On the other side, an illustrious unknown, Hashani, who has since been the FIS' public leader, started out declaring that he would refuse to talk to the government while Madani and Belhadj remained in prison. Despite this, he was quick to negotiate with the government and get ready for these elections, declaring all the time that the FIS would not take part if its leaders remained in jail.
Then the FIS was not only preparing to take part, but was even ready to put forward its imprisoned big chiefs not as candidates, but merely as alternates, to get round the stipulation that candidates must present their dossiers in person, while lying about this to the rank-and-file of the FIS.
However the government has even refused them this, without legal grounds. Hashani once again declared that the FIS would boycott the elections, while at the same time making statements like: "If we take part, we must win; if we do not take part, we must prevent the elections from taking place." The FIS' final aim is to 19 take part.
FREE elections are due in Algeria on December 26, 1991. The big question is whether the powerful Algerian Islamic fundamentalist movement, the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), will stand, and how well it will do, given the arrest of its leaders and the regime's attempts to fix the electoral system to its own advantage. I spoke to Chawki Salhi, a spokesperson of the Algerian Socialist Workers Party (Algerian sympathisers of the Fourth International) about the background to these elections. The interview took place on November 26.
FREE elections are due in Algeria on December 26, 1991. The big question is whether the powerful Algerian Islamic fundamentalist movement, the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), will stand, and how well it will do, given the arrest of its leaders and the regime's attempts to fix the electoral system to its own I spoke to Chawki Salhi, a spokesperson of the Algerian Socialist Workers Party (Algerian sympathisers of the Fourth International) about the background to these elections. The interview took place on November 26.
ALGERIA
• In your opinion, after the state of emergency, does the FIS still have strong popular support?
The FIS has lost a lot of ground; already by this spring it had lost its hegemony among the masses. But, despite this, it has been able to occupy a central place on the political stage because other forces do not amount to an alternative.
The democratic parties have put all their energy into futile polemics in the National Assembly, leaving the field free to the FIS to appear as the consistent, genuine opposition.
However, it is the economic crisis that is at the heart of people's concerns, and about this the FIS has little to say. It has failed to build a trade union and only puts itself at the head of social discontent when movements have already developed.
The FIS continues to loom large on the political scene: it filled a big stadium this autumn to demand the lifting of the state of emergency; it has held marches, including one from Tizi to Ouzou on November 23/24, to present itself in a combative and all-conquering light. This may serve to justify its participation in the elections in the eyes of a militant rank-and-file.
Recently, some FIS groups have been sabotaging the activities of other parties — Ben Bella has several times been prevented from holding meetings in the East. It is not clear if this is part of a conscious policy or the work of overexcitable groups. • What is the popular feeling about the approaching elections?
People's main concern is the economic crisis. Furthermore, democracy has lost credibility among the people. The state of emergency has made even more clear the derisory character of the supposed alternatives, who debate in the media while being unable to change anything.
The regime, which, besides the government, also involves the army, the president and so on, has appeared as the ringmaster. There is a widespread feeling that the big parties do not want the people to decide, since these parties don't know what they would choose.
The positions of various leaders of the opposition have strengthened this confusion. For example, Ait Ahmed one day defends the government, the army and the economic policy; a leader of the Democratic Movement For Algerian Renewal, a puppet party of the FLN, calls for "the unity of all" and the suppression of democracy to save Algeria... People believe that the government is behind everything and the party leaderships are minor actors.
At the same time there is this campaign, orchestrated by the government 20 that says: "be careful, stay calm; the elections will be postponed". These rumours are aimed at tendencies to working class militancy, calling for social peace with the blackmail of a possible coup d'etat - even if things are never put as openly as this.
There has even been a rumour that the general strike which the General Union of Algerian Workers (UGTA) tried to organize in June 1991 was nothing but a manoeuvre by the regime to block the elections.
This is all working, with a loss of confidence in democracy and the dismantling of all the social organizations born out of the uprising of 1988. These days there is nothing but the parties, and they are not impressive.
The few workers who followed the fundamentalists' call for a general strike in June have been sacked and remain out of work despite a campaign around this question. This has made workers feel powerless and sowed fear at a time when there is a wave of job cutbacks.
Thus people are not very interested in the election campaign, which is aimed at winning social peace. A high abstention rate is thus to be expected, but not a boycott, since people see no alternative. Furthermore many young people will not vote because they do not have identity papers.
The system of electoral cards is chaotic — this used to be a worthless piece of paper — many people have two, others none at all. Finally, in my view, the turnout among women will be low and their husbands can now no longer vote in their place. However, if the FIS takes part, people will follow the electoral duel with more interest, even if they don't vote. • It seems as if the economic situation has got a lot worse recently. The government has introduced new IMF-type reforms. Have there been reactions among the workers?
he crisis began long ago. Ine prev us goverment or Hamroush alread started on a programme of structural reforms of the sort seen elsewhere in the Third World, to get international credits before its electoral campaign. The provisional measures taken then camouflaged the gravity of the reforms entered into.
The IMF obviously wants Algerians to be even poorer, to provide a cheap labour force and improve Algeria's place in the world market. To do this the government devalued the dinar (dividing it by five), which hit the population's living standards hard. This devaluation was hidden behind a simple administrative operation - profiting from the fact that the dinar is not convertible.
On a particular date it was announced that the dinar would be reduced in value by 50% and that after two years it would be worth four times less. The effects were hidden behind high taxes above all on goods bought by the middle classes
International Viewpoint #218 • December 9, 1991
- such as household appliances, while ench cashald annances while the most basic products, such as milk or cooking oil, remained at low prices. However, the IMF insisted that the govemment stop subsidizing prices, and Hamroush promised this in a letter of intent to the IMF.
The June elections did not take place and the IMF decided that it could not go on indefinitely financing the FLN, despite the spectre of fundamentalism. The Ghozali government found itself obliged to honour Hamroush's promises in order to get further credit; indeed, it went further and sold rights to oil exploitation to foreign companies. Thus the IMF is looking to regain everything lost during the colonial revolution and as a result of popular pressures, by pulling down every protectionist barrier.
These measures led to a very confused debate within the political class, organized by Ghozali himself. The idea was to get the population to accept these "common sense" measures while discrediting the more populist solutions coming from within the FLN and heading off militant opposition.
The neo-liberal offensive by the govemment hit the population hard and a whole series of strikes broke out in the more privileged layers of wage workers — higher education, doctors, airline pilots and so on — demanding wage rises, which often seemed enormous compared to the miserable wages of other workers.
The UGTA was pushed into action by the pressure from its rank-and-file. This led to negotiations between this union and the government, with less than impressive results.
The minimum wage was to rise from 2,500 to 3,500 dinars by July 1992, which in no way compensates for the massive rises in the prices of the most basic goods.
Meanwhile neither the IMF nor the French bank Crédit Lyonnais, which is heavily involved in Algeria, gave a cent, waiting for the final vote on the liberalization of prices and perhaps also a clearer view of the political scene. • Has the PST succeeded in presenting lists in these legislative elections?
Unfortunately we were not able to construct a front with other organizations. However, we are putting forward 53 candidates in 16 departments throughout the country. Among those on our lists are the general secretary of the railworkers union and other leaders of struggles.
The PST has many women candidates. While we are putting forward only 1% of the total number of candidates, we are putting forward 25% of the women in this election.
Furthermore a group of militants from the Communist Movement of Algeria has just joined the PST. *
WOMEN: France